Haven
by Dante Morgan
Summary: After Aizen's defeat, Ichigo's life was finally starting to return to normal. That is, until a heavily injured Espada shows up at his doorstep one night, putting an abrupt end to the relative peace. Ichigo saves him, but knows he can't just let a former enemy walk free. What's more, Grimmjow's assailant soon turns out to be no stranger to the Gotei... Rated M for violence.
1. Survival Instinct

A/N: I understand that you probably just want to start reading, so I'll keep try to keep this short. First of all, there are spoilers ahead. If you have not yet finished the Arrancar Saga, I highly recommend doing so before reading any further. Aside from that, spoilers for the rest of the series, (i.e. Fullbring arc and onward) will be kept to a minimum and I will definitely not reveal any major plot points. If I were to do so in a future Author's Note, there will be clearly marked spoilerspace.

This story picks up after the Deicide arc and is based on the anime version, meaning that Ichigo temporarily retains his powers after the final battle with Aizen. Also, I will be switching between English and Japanese terms from the Bleachverse, such as Soul Reaper and Shinigami. At the end of each chapter, there will be a segment where I give a short description of the more obscure terms I used in said chapter.

Alright then, on to the warnings: Graphic Violence, Swearing and possible (LGBT) relationships. To expand a bit on that last one: nothing is really set in stone just yet. I'd like to have relationships between characters develop organically and unforced. The only thing I can say with certainty is that the relation between Grimmjow and Ichigo will be constantly evolving as the story progresses, and that they'll be more than just friends, be that in a romantic way or not. But while we're on the subject, I just want to clarify that no matter what happens later on down the road, there will be no Seme/Uke bullshit in any way, shape or form.

So please, if any of these things is not your cup of tea, do yourself a favor and click the 'back' button. You can usually find it in the top left corner of your browser window.

**Disclaimer: Bleach and all related characters are copyrighted materials and belong to Tite Kubo.**

* * *

><p><span><em>Part 1: Darkening Skies<em>

**Chapter 1: Survival Instinct**

He'd lost sight of the enemy.

A particularly flashy explosion, the result of two powerful Cero colliding head-on, had forced Grimmjow to shield his eyes for just a few seconds. Apparently, that had been enough time for his opponent to pull a vanishing act on him.

Grimmjow wasn't foolish enough to believe that the powerful Hollow he was fighting had fled the battlefield. The incredibly potent Reiatsu still pressing down on him told him that much at least. That being said, the air was so saturated with it that it was impossible to pinpoint its source, and standing around in the open with no cover nearby and no idea of his enemy's whereabouts would be akin to suicide, so Grimmjow decided that his first order of business should be to relocate his target. To that end, Grimmjow jumped up into the air and kept on climbing until he had put considerable distance between himself and the ground. From his current vantage point high above the white desert he could easily see hundreds of meters into the distance, as well as scan the terrain directly below him. Even so, Grimmjow had no more luck seeking the bastard out from up here than he had on the ground.

It had already been over an hour since the fight had started. 'One-sided' would be one way to describe the flow of the battle. To say that he was getting curb-stomped would be more accurate. The Sexta Espada was bruised and battered all over, yet he hadn't even been able to put a scratch on his adversary's Hierro, despite his Resurrección having been active the whole time.

Grimmjow was just starting to descend again when it happened. The familiar low humming that accompanied a Sonido was the only warning he received. There wasn't any time to dodge.

The blow that followed was powerful enough to knock him clean out of the sky and sent him helplessly crashing back down into the white sands of Hueco Mundo. Several ribs cracked on impact, making Grimmjow snarl with pain. Despite the physical agony he was in, Grimmjow managed to turn around and forced himself back up into a sitting position, trying his hardest to get some air back into his lungs; breathing was already hard enough when you were being crushed by such overwhelming Reiatsu. Five broken ribs didn't exactly make it any easier.

A large, blurry figure came into view, looming over him from the edge of the crater Grimmjow's rough landing had created. Accompanied by a flash of light, a familiar weight manifested in Grimmjow's hand. Almost disbelievingly, he looked at the Zanpakuto he was now holding.

There couldn't have been a worse time for his Resurreccion to give out on him. Without it, he was as good as dead.

Sensing Grimmjow's weakness, the Hollow jumped down into the pit and mercilessly stomped on Grimmjow's chest with a clawed foot. The pristine white sand was stained by splotches of red as Grimmjow violently puked up blood. Some of the ribs he'd broken earlier had turned his lungs into Swiss cheese, helped along by his assailant.

"Son of a...", Grimmjow weakly muttered between coughs as more blood began to trickle into his lungs. Out of the many painful experiences he'd accumulated over the years, the sensation of having his lungs slowly fill up with his own, warm blood was easily the worst of them all.

As he stared up into the soulless eyes of the monster before him, a strange, unfamiliar sensation came over him. He could hear his own heartbeat pounding in his ears, while at the same time an unnatural cold spread throughout his body. His already shallow breathing became erratic. His hands were shaking so uncontrollably he involuntarily let go of Pantera. The knowledge that his very existence would be wiped away any second now permeated every cell in his body.

For the first time in his life, Grimmjow was absolutely terrified.

A healthy dose of fear was an integral part of any life-or-death battle. The way Grimmjow had always seen it, fear was simply what prevented you from doing stupid things that got you killed. Never before had it caused him to feel so utterly helpless, to even lose control over his own body like this. He took solace in the fact that he hadn't pissed himself yet.

Even when it had looked like he was about to be killed by Nnoitra, he hadn't felt the slightest hint of fear. Yes, he'd been humiliated: first being shown mercy by his enemy and then being toyed with by Nnoitra like that. He'd been furious when he saw how much pleasure the freak took in ending his life while he could do nothing to resist. Anger had soon made way for surprise when a certain Shinigami stood between him and Nnoitra to block the deadly blow. But afraid? No. He even remembered wishing Nnoitra would just hurry up and get it over with.

This time though, there was no one around to save him. But that wasn't what frightened him. Grimmjow was sure of it; what he was feeling right now, this emotion... the creature pinning him to the ground was causing it. There was something off about its Spiritual Pressure. Aside from the raw, undiluted power it was emitting, the uncontrolled fury and hatred mixed in with it were almost tangible. This monstrosity was out for blood, and lots of it. And since Grimmjow's body just so happened to be the closest container of said liquid...

He was brought back to the situation at hand by a bright, deep purple light that told him he was about to have his head blown off by a powerful Cero if he didn't do something fast. Managing to pull himself back together, he quickly charged a Bala in response and fired it a mere instant before his opponent was able to unleash his own attack. The blast wasn't meant for doing damage though. Grimmjow might have been reckless, stubborn and overconfident in his own abilities, but even then he wasn't stupid enough to think he stood a chance against an opponent like this, let alone that he would be able to kill him in one hit.

The bullet of red energy hit the creature in the wrist, barely doing any damage due to its thick Hierro, but it had resulted in the desired effect: the force behind the Bala had caused his attacker's hand to move about two inches to the left just before the Cero was released, making it narrowly miss the Espada's head. The resulting explosion was something he had been prepared for, but the impact it had on his broken body still hurt like a bitch. Both he and his adversary were sent flying, and Grimmjow just couldn't help the smirk tugging at his lips when he heard a startled cry of surprise.

That smirk quickly disappeared when he once again made a rough landing. This time he fell on a large, relatively flat piece of rock, making him cry out as the broken ribs were pushed even further into his internal organs and made him cough up even more blood. He twisted his broken body so that he could lie on his side. It was a little easier to breathe now that he had put some distance between himself and The Beast, as he had dubbed it in his mind.

Through sheer force of will, Grimmjow pushed himself off of the ground once again, shakily trying to stand up using his sword as leverage. He let out a pained cry and another curse as his legs gave out from under him. He took a quick look at what the Beast was doing, and was surprised to see it had barely moved. In fact, it seemed to be completely ignoring him in favor of checking out its slightly singed wrist.

With almost childlike curiosity, it observed the mild burn caused by Grimmjow's Bala, as if trying to figure out how it had gotten there. White liquid bubbled up from within the wound, briefly obscured it from view, and receded as quickly as it had come, leaving behind smooth, unblemished Hierro. The feeling of satisfaction that had welled up inside of Grimmjow when he had finally done some damage, no matter how little it may have been, quickly reverted to annoyance.

Now that it's wrist was back to normal, the creature turned to Grimmjow once again, apparently just now remembering he was still there.

Grimmjow cursed again. He'd let himself get distracted, wasting precious seconds. As the beast easily got up and started walking toward him, once again completely unscathed, Grimmjow felt fear pooling in the pit of his stomach. The image of an orange-haired young man clad in black blocking a deadly blow for him involuntary flashed before his mind's eye once again.

_"You tell me first! How can you attack a guy that can't even move!?" _

That sentence had been seared into his brain. Every single day since his defeat at the hands of that young Soul Reaper, he had replayed that moment over and over again in his head.

In that instant, he made his decision. He tore at the air before him and opened a Garganta, making his executioner stop its movements once again. It tilted its head, as if wondering what its blue-haired punching bag was up to now.

Grimmjow was too busy to see this new development, as he was desperately pulling his body toward the darkness in front of him. It wasn't until he was already halfway in that the beast realized what he was doing and roared angrily as it tried to catch up to him. It was already too late, though. The Garganta closed just as the tips of Grimmjow's toes crossed the border between Hueco Mundo and nothingness, completely blocking out the heavy Spiritual pressure. At least now Grimmjow didn't feel like the sky itself was weighing down on him anymore.

He sheathed Pantera and allowed himself a couple minutes of rest, before willing himself to start moving again. He knew that with these wounds, he'd either bleed out or drown in his own blood in under ten minutes. And that was being generous. Since neither of those options seemed very appealing to Grimmjow, he kept going, focusing on keeping that patch of energy below him solidified. And even that was a nearly impossible task in his current condition. The battle had drained Grimmjow of nearly all of his Reiryoku. Trying to use any more would probably kill him.

After a mere three meters, he collapsed again. He was never going to make it like this. With great effort, he pushed himself back up on his hands and knees just as he got an idea. Carefully, he attempted to make the thin board separating him from a bottomless, swirling black void move forward. And to his obvious surprise, it actually worked. He allowed a weak smile to tug at his lips. He'd been due to have a good idea sooner or later.

As he slowly drifted through the unending blackness, he couldn't help but feel like such a coward as the events replayed within his mind.

He always acted though, thought he was better and stronger than everyone else, but when faced by someone... no, rather some_thing_ so much more powerful than he was, he had ran away. He chuckled darkly at the situation he was in. "Ulquiorra should see me now," he muttered softly to himself. "I bet even that bastard would laugh his ass off if he saw how fucking pathetic I look right now..."

He was alone with his thoughts for a while, until he noticed that the glowing board of Spirit Energy beneath him was slowing down, and looked up to see a slightly familiar building come into view as the air split apart once again. The sign above the main entrance read 'Kurosaki clinic'. Well, that was good. A clinic was definitely something he could use right about now. He pulled himself forward into the cold night air, the tear in space sealing shut behind him. Finally, he allowed himself to succumb to his injuries and dropped to the ground. His cheek pressed against the cold, hard material of the road, but he didn't even care. He'd made it.

He flared his Reiatsu using the last of his energy, hoping that the teen would come to investigate. Then, he just waited for something to happen, barely clinging to consciousness and completely unable to move.

Unfortunately, it appeared that Lady Luck wasn't on his side today. A big black SUV with headlights that almost mockingly glared at him was quickly coming closer. The man at the wheel couldn't see him of course, but he would probably notice something when his car's tires crushed Grimmjow's skull.

He laughed once again at the patheticness of the situation, louder this time. If he'd known that this was how it would end, he'd have just let the bastard blow his head off. Then he would've at least been able to die with _some_ dignity. The laughing became louder. The strong, proud warrior; the Sexta Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, lying in the middle of the road waiting to be run over by a fucking _car_.

He closed his eyes, a self-mocking smile still on his lips as he waited for his life to end. But it didn't. Unexpectedly, he felt himself getting picked up by strong arms, followed by a rush of wind as he was pulled along with a Flash Step. Shocked, he opened his eyes and saw someone with brown eyes and amazingly bright orange hair looking back at him.

"Why are you- holy crap! What the hell happened to you?" The young man asked, sounding panicked. He just kept staring into those eyes that had always looked at him with such defiance. Right now, they were filled with concern, or maybe it was pity? He wasn't really sure anymore, nor did he care all that much at the moment.

"Kuro-sa..." He finally let go of consciousness and fell into blissful unawareness. He heard the young Soul Reaper's voice calling out to him as he allowed his body to go limp. He had made the right choice. He was safe now.

The last thought that went through Grimmjow's dazed mind before he passed out was that for him, this had to be the one truly safe place in the world.

* * *

><p>AN: About the Hollow Grimm was fighting: I didn't want to recycle an old villain *<em>cough, <em>Aizen, _cough*_, or make one of the good guys suddenly decide they want to be bad, so I made an OC. I didn't want to give anything away in the first chapter, but all will be revealed soon. He'll play a crucial part in the story of course, but this fic is still about Grimmjow and Ichigo, so the focus will be on them.

Reviews are highly appreciated. Constructive criticism is always welcome, so if you see something that could have been done better, spot spelling errors or plotholes, don't hesitate to let me know.

**Terms used:**

Hierro: The hardened skin of an Arrancar that serves as armor.

Resurreccion: A form in which an Arrancar gains more Hollow-like characteristics and gets a major power-boost.

Reiryoku: Spirit energy that anyone with supernatural powers carries within them.

Reiatsu: Reiryoku that leaks out subconsciously. Can be repressed when a person wants to remain undetected, or can be strengthened to intimidate or incapacitate weaker foes.

Garganta: Portal used to travel to and from Hueco Mundo.

Flash Step/Shunpo: High-speed technique used by Soul Reapers.

Sonido: Arrancar equivalent of Shunpo.


	2. Status Critical

**Chapter 2: Status Critical**

Ichigo looked at the wounded Espada with concern. Grimmjow was now lying within an orange bubble created by Orihime's Soten Kisshun; they had called her the second they realized just how bad his injuries really were. When he had found him just lying there in the middle of the road, looking like a mangled chew-toy, Ichigo couldn't just leave him, even if they had been enemies once. Hell, maybe they still were. Especially not when he had noticed the car coming straight at Grimmjow. His body had already been moving before Ichigo even realized what he was doing.

He had brought Grimmjow up to his room through the still open window and dumped him on the bed - pushing his own, vacant body off in the process - before yelling at his dad for help. Isshin had promptly changed into Soul Reaper form and tried his best to keep the man alive with his rudimentary knowledge of healing Kido while Ichigo went to call Orihime. His yelling had woken up his sisters, who in turn had tried to help in any way they could after hastily being explained what happened. Ichigo had then hurried into the living room and made a beeline for his cell phone, having left the device on the dinner table since Keigo tended to pester him with texts whenever he couldn't sleep. To Ichigo, waiting for the call to Orihime to finally connect felt like it had taken hours.

Then, exactly seven minutes later, Orihime had stormed into his bedroom - fully dressed, despite having arrived so quickly - and had already yelled out "Soten Kisshun!" before anyone was able to react, and dropped to her knees by Grimmjow's side.

Which is how they had gotten into the situation they found themselves in now: Isshin and Ichigo both in Soul Reaper form, ready to strike at Grimmjow should he decide to attack and both Ichigo's sisters, still in their pajamas, leaning against the wall that was the furthest away from Grimmjow for obvious safety reasons. All of them were watching Orihime heal their unexpected visitor.

Ichigo threw a glance at his sisters. He had already told them both about his time as a Soul Reaper, so something like this happening shouldn't come as a total surprise to them, but he could imagine how the whole situation must feel a little surreal to them both. Then again, this wasn't exactly their first encounter with the supernatural, so maybe it didn't.

He'd noticed that while his own Spiritual abilities kept getting weaker as time went on, Karin's only got stronger. Ichigo knew that she had visited Urahara's shop on several occasions, but had decided not to meddle in her affairs. After all, she was the only one in this house that respected his privacy, so he reasoned he should at least offer her the same courtesy. And it wasn't like Karin couldn't handle herself. If she somehow did get in over her head, he trusted she would know well enough to come straight to either him or their father.

As for Yuzu, he could only imagine how weird this had to be for her. Unlike her sister, she still had trouble seeing spirits. Through her eyes, the only people in the room besides herself were Karin, Orihime, Kon - if you counted him as a person, that is - and Ichigo's unmoving body, which no-one seemed to be paying any attention to. Ichigo himself, her dad and Grimmjow were just blurry shapes to her.

Karin on the other hand, watched in amazement (and mild disgust) as the piece rib that stuck out of the man's chest slid back into place with a sickening, wet pop before the puncture wound it had caused sealed shut.

"I'm almost done," Orihime panted. Ichigo could tell she had already used an incredible amount of energy; she may have been overextending herself here. "I still can't believe he survived long enough to make it all the way here from Hueco Mundo. He must have barely been able to breathe. His lungs were in terrible condition." Kon walked up to her and handed her a clean handkerchief. She wiped the sweat off her brow and handed it back to him, uttering a quick thank you before focusing on Grimmjow again. "I mean, even for one of the Espada, to be able to move with your internal organs damaged like this..."

A few more cracks were heard as bones shifted back into place and the last few cuts and bruises disappeared. The healing bubble then vanished and the two fairies returned to Orihime's hairpins.  
>"There. All done." She sat there breathing heavily, staring straight ahead of her with a glassy look in her eyes and looking rather pale.<p>

"Hey, Orihime, are you all right?" Ichigo asked, getting rather worried. Just then, the girl tipped over due to sheer exhaustion, making Yuzu cry out. Ichigo quickly shot to her side and was able to catch her before she hit the floor. He gently pulled her back upright, draping an arm over her shoulders so she wouldn't fall over again.

Even that simple action already had Orihime blushing, so she looked at her knees to try and hide her embarrassment. At least she'd gotten some color into her face again. "K-kurosaki-kun! I'm sorry for making you worry! I'm just a bit tired since I've never healed injuries as bad as these before. You can let go now!"

He chuckled at how easy it was to make her blush. It seemed that every time they touched, even if they simply brushed hands while simultaneously reaching for the salt while eating together, the girl's face would become red like a tomato. "Don't be silly. I'll help you up."

Blushing even more fiercely if possible, she slowly put her own arm around her friend's shoulders. She would have refused, but she just knew that if she did Ichigo would simply pick her up and carry her down the stairs against her will. She went with the less embarrassing option.

Yuzu and Isshin both made 'aaah'-noises at the gesture, Karin just smirked.

"Oh shut up, both of you...", The teen muttered, a mild blush now decorating his own cheeks. Not because he was touching Orihime, but because his stupid, crazy family was making way too big a deal out of it. He was simply helping out a friend, he didn't see what all the fuss was about.

When he pulled her up, he noticed how much weight she was putting on him. It seemed she had completely drained herself to save Grimmjow's life. Thanks to Orihime's efforts, the Espada had completely recovered physically. He wouldn't be waking up for a while though. Even if his body was in perfect condition, it would take time for him to regain his energy. Ichigo couldn't even begin to image what could have possibly caused such injuries to a powerful fighter like Grimmjow. His thoughts went back to Orihime when the girl's legs gave out a little. No way was she getting home by herself in that condition.

"Hey Yuzu, is the guest bed ready?" He asked his sister.

"W-What? No! I can get home just fine, y-you don't have to go out of your way for me..." Orihime quickly stammered out.

"Oh no, you're not!" Yuzu quickly walked over to them and put her hands on her hips, a clear signal that there would be no room for arguments. "Ichigo's right, you're way too tired to go home by yourself right now! I'll go prepare an extra bed in me and Karin's room so you can spend the rest of the night here."

"But I-"

"Don't bother. You can't argue with her once she gets like this," his other sister piped up. "Plus, she's right. You should just stay here and rest up, Orihime-san. We don't have school tomorrow so you can sleep in as long as you like." She walked up to the doorway. "Come on, Yuzu. I'll help you with the bed." They both slipped past Ichigo and Orihime, heading toward their room.

"Oh, my wonderful, considerate daughters! I raised them so well! Masaki would be so proud!" Isshin started bawling while pathetically muttering his late wife's name.

"Pull yourself together already, Goatface!" When no reaction was given, Ichigo grabbed the nearest throwable object, which happened to be Kon, and slugged his father in the face with it. "Get over yourself and keep an eye on him!" He ordered his father. "I don't want him blowing up the house if he suddenly wakes up!"

He led Orihime to his sisters' bedroom and gently put her down on the bed that had been prepared for her. "Do you need anything? You can borrow one of my shirts to sleep in, since my sisters' stuff is probably too small for you..." he trailed off, suddenly realizing something. "By the way, why are you still wearing your clothes from yesterday?"

The blush that had been fading was now back in full force. She'd burst a blood vessel if she kept this up. "Well," she started uneasily. "I was trying out some new recipes with octopus and watermelon, but I must have done something wrong since I suddenly passed out after tasting it," she shamefully admitted. "I didn't wake up until you called me, actually. But I'll be fine, I'll just sleep in these clothes... I need to wash them anyway, I seems I spilled some mashed tentacle on it when I fainted." She pointed to a large white stain with chunks of orange in it just below the collar of her blouse.

Ichigo silently vowed NEVER to accept food from Orihime ever again, even if the only alternative would be starvation. Starvation would probably be a less painful process than trying to digest whatever it was that passed as food to her.

Suddenly one of Ichigo's shirts landed next to her on the bed, having been thrown by Karin. "It's an old shirt. He hasn't worn it in years." She walked up to her brother and grabbed the sleeve of his shihakusho, using it to pull him out of the room. "Now give her some privacy!"

The redhead just chuckled at his sister's antics. "Alright. G'night, Orihime."

"Goodnight, Kurosaki-kun." She smiled weakly at him. Her face betrayed just how exhausted she really was. Ichigo felt a little guilty about making her go through so much trouble. The blue-haired son of a bitch that was currently occupying his bed probably wouldn't even give her so much as a 'thank you' either.

Karin let go of his sleeve once they were in the hallway. Right before she closed the door, she told Orihime not to worry, since she would 'make sure the perverts didn't get into the room' while she changed. It took a little while for Ichigo's sleep-deprived brain to process what she had said. "Wait a minute, perverts? As in plural?" He bowed down until he was at eye-level with Karin and glared at her. "That you're including Kon is a given, but are you implying that _I'm_ a pervert too?"

She just smirked at him, not backing down in the least. "Well, maybe you're not as bad as that stuffed lion-thing of yours, but you ARE a sixteen-year-old boy, so..."

"Why you little-" He was interrupted by the sound of the doorbell ringing, which confused both of them. What kind of a person would come to their house at four in the morning?

"Ichigo! Could you open the door?" his father's voice sounded from his bedroom. "I asked Kisuke to come pick up the Espada."

Of course. Urahara. Who else?

"This ain't over," he quietly muttered to Karin before returning to his full height. With a few quick Flash Steps, Ichigo was at the front door. He opened it to reveal Kisuke Urahara and Tessai Tsukabishi, the former wearing his usual green robes while the latter seemed to have simply put on a coat over his nightwear.

"Well hello there, Kurosaki-san! Long time no see!" the blond greeted him with his usual goofy smile, not looking tired in the least. Knowing Urahara, he probably hadn't even gone to bed yet.

"Kurosaki-dono." Tessai bowed briefly, much more formal and reserved than his companion.

"Hey there Hat-and-clogs, Tessai. You guys sure don't waste any time."

The man shot him a grin while pulling his signature hat a bit lower, so that a shadow fell over his eyes. "Well, we can't afford to take it slow when you have an Espada in your bed now, can we?"

"Wait, how did you know he was-?"

Both men quickly stepped inside, ignoring his question. "Hey, Urahara!" He called after them, slightly suspicious.

"Relax Ichigo!", the man said over his shoulder, "I just sensed where the Reiatsu came from, it's not like I have hidden camera's in there... anymore." The last part was spoken significantly softer, but Ichigo had heard it loud and clear.

"Camera's? In my room?" He thought about that for a second. What could Urahara have seen him do in there? "URAHARA!" He snarled furiously, instantly going into Kill-mode.

The unlucky Hollow that had decided to show up right outside the house just then was instantly crushed by the Spiritual Pressure emitted by a very pissed off Substitute Soul Reaper.

"Calm down, I don't see what all the fuss is about. I mean, it's not like you have anything to be ashamed of." As if what Urahara was implying with that sentence wasn't already enough, the man just had to wiggle his eyebrows suggestively after he was done speaking.

If Tessai hadn't been so quick to restrain Ichigo, Urahara would've had his own cane shoved up his ass already. "Lemme go! I'm gonna kill that perverted son of a bitch!" he roared.  
>Ichigo trashed and squirmed violently, even using both hands to push at Tessai's face in an attempt to break free and exact revenge, but the taller man kept him trapped in a vice-grip around his waist as Ichigo's intended target Flash Stepped out of sight.<p>

"Please calm yourself, Kurosaki-dono! Those camera's were for your own protection!" Tessai tried to reason with him. "What if Aizen had sent an assassin into your bedroom while you were asleep?"

"Protection, my ass! I don't even wanna know what that freak was doing while he watched me!" He resorted to elbowing Tessai in the chest repeatedly, which had about as much effect as throwing pebbles at a brick wall.

"Urahara-dono would never do anything of the sort!" Tessai replied heatedly. "It was a very awkward matter for both us!" While such straightforwardness may have been an admirable character trait in a different situation, right now it only served to seal Tessai's fate.

Ichigo's face turned beet-red from anger and embarrassment (but mostly anger), which clashed horribly with his orange spikes. "YOU WERE WATCHING ME TOO? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?" Furious at the new information, he kicked Tessai right in the groin, forcing the man to let go. He felt a slight sting of pity as Tessai fell to the ground and curled up into the fetal position; sobbing quietly to himself while trying to protect the abused parts of his body from further harm.

Deciding to ignore him for now, Ichigo ran up the stairs again. _One down,_ he smugly thought to himself. _Now for the other one_. He pushed open the door to his bedroom, already thinking up multiple ways in which he could exact bloody vengeance. However, once he was inside, Ichigo was distracted from his objective. He saw Urahara putting thick, ancient-looking metal cuffs around Grimmjow's wrists. "Hey Hat-and-clogs, what are those for?" He asked suspiciously. Urahara may not have been anywhere near as bad as Kurotsuchi, but Grimmjow was still a Hollow. He didn't know what Urahara was planning to do with him. As the second handcuff clicked shut, the metal briefly flickered orange, followed by Grimmjow's already very weak Reiatsu completely disappearing.

"Ah, Kurosaki-san, there you are. These are Reiryoku-draining handcuffs. With these on, he won't be a threat to us should he regain consciousness. That way we won't have to watch him 24/7." Urahara looked around the room, seeming confused about something. "Tessai?" he called out, apparently just know noticing that the man wasn't in the room with them.

"Yes, Urahara-dono?" The sound came from directly behind Ichigo, startling him. He was sure the man had still been curled up in a ball downstairs just a second ago.  
>"Where the hell did you come from?!" Ichigo had to shamefully admit he had barely managed to suppress what would have been a not very manly yelp. He noticed Tessai was still slightly bent over because of the pain, but seemed perfectly fine otherwise.<p>

"Could you escort our new guest here to the shop?" Urahara asked. The bastard seemed amused at Ichigo's obvious discomfort. When Ichigo finally got his hands on him, they'd have to wipe his blood of the walls.

"Of course, sir." Tessai walked over to the bed and effortlessly threw the incapacitated Espada over his shoulder.

"Alright then, looks like we're all set!" Urahara started waving his fan again, letting it cover the stupid grin that had found it's way back onto his face. "Pleasure seeing you again, Isshin. Say hi to the girls for me!"

Both men exited the room after Isshin said his goodbyes. He went to put his daughters to bed, leaving Ichigo to show the pair out.

"Don't think you're getting off easy, Urahara." Ichigo grit out once they were outside. "Now may not be the time, but as soon as I get you alone I swear I am going to kill you and I will _enjoy it." _The last part was more growled than spoken, since Ichigo was incapable of unclenching his teeth due to his anger.

"I'll look forward to it, Kurosaki-san!" He flashed him that retarded grin again, not helping Ichigo's barely controlled temper. Suddenly the grin was gone, and Urahara raised his head a little so that the shadow from his hat no longer obscured his eyes. "You should come by the shop later today. The Espada could have just gone straight to Inoue-san if he wanted to be healed, but he came to you. If he still hasn't woken up by then, he may show a reaction if he senses your Reiatsu nearby." The shopkeeper turned around and quietly regarded the incapacitated Espada. "If there's something out there that's capable of causing that kind of injuries to an Espada, we need to find out what it is. Of course, it could just be that a pack of Hollows ganged up on him, but that's rather unlikely considering how much the normal Hollow variety fears the Arrancar."

Ichigo's jaw had slightly dropped as he realized what Urahara was implying with that statement. It looked like the peace he'd been enjoying these last few weeks may have just come to an abrupt end. He blinked, halting his train of thought in favor of going back to bed for a few more hours.  
>"Well... alright, I guess. I'll swing by later today, in the afternoon. I'm gonna get a few more hours of sleep first, though." He didn't bother suppressing a giant yawn, as if to emphasize the point.<p>

"Great!" The man smiled, already back to his usual self. "We'll see you later then. Good night, Kurosaki-san!"

"'Night."

Tessai bowed once more, almost dropping Grimmjow in the process, and suddenly both men were gone, leaving Ichigo by himself. He tiredly scratched his head as he went back inside, contemplating the night's events.

He locked the front door before going back upstairs. He only hoped none of the neighbors had woken up due to all the commotion. It would be pretty hard to explain why their front door had seemingly opened and closed by itself multiple times in one night. Just as he was about to go upstairs, his father called out to him from the living room.

"Ichigo!" He whisper-yelled so as to not disturb the girls. "Could you come here for a minute?"

Sighing tiredly, he turned around and headed toward the living room. Upon entering, he saw that his father had already reclaimed his body. He was sitting at the dinner table, waiting for Ichigo. "What is it?" He asked him.

Isshin watched him intently, making Ichigo feel a bit uncomfortable. Just as Ichigo was about to run out of patience, his father started talking again. "I wanted to ask how your powers are holding up. When I sensed that Arrancar's Reiatsu, I got worried and was about to investigate, but then I sensed you all of a sudden using your Shinigami powers again. I nearly had a heart attack!" It made sense for Isshin to be worried. Ichigo hadn't used his powers even once since the end of the war. Isshin had though that the reason Ichigo had done it now was to go and _fight _the Arrancar outside. Doing so with unstable Reiatsu and not having tested his powers in all that time would have been far too reckless, even for Ichigo. He didn't know whether to be relieved or worried that his son hadn't fought, but saved the Espada.

Said son rolled his eyes in response. "Don't be so dramatic, dad. I'm fine." He wasn't lying. After using the Final Getsuga Tenshou, Ichigo had fallen unconscious for an entire month. When he woke up again, Rukia had been there to tell him that what was left of his power would eventually disappear. However, it had already been eight days since he had regained consciousness. While his powers had noticeably weakened during that time, it was surprising to see just how slowly the process seemed to go. In his current state, he felt like he would even be able to activate his Bankai without too much difficulty. Using his mask as well may have been pushing it though.

Isshin sighed tiredly. "Alright. If you say so." He got out of his seat and headed toward the hallway, saying goodnight to Ichigo as he passed him.

"Goodnight dad," Ichigo said while watching his father leave the room. He waited until he heard his father reach the second floor before taking hold of the sword on his back. Holding the large, elegant cleaver horizontally in front of him, he carefully observed the blade.

This was the main reason he had tried not to us his powers. The blade felt completely empty. Zangetsu was gone. No matter how many times he called out to him, his Zanpakutou's spirit wouldn't reply. He returned the sword to its place on his back. There was a certain finality to the action. Despite knowing it was impossible, a small part of him had still been clinging to the naive hope that Zangetsu wasn't really gone after all. Now, he knew for sure the old man was gone for good.

He eventually left the living room and slowly trudged up the stairs. After reclaiming his body from where it had been lying on the hardwood floor this whole time, he immediately went back to bed. There were still some blood stains on his sheets, but Ichigo couldn't have cared less right now. Being a Soul Reaper pretty much immunized you to the sight and smell of blood. While fighting Hollows, he had gotten completely drenched in stuff that was a thousand times worse than just blood.

No, the blood wasn't the issue here. He'd just change his sheets in the morning. What was _really_ annoying him right now was the smell. Grimmjow's, to be precise. That asshole had lain on his best for not even a full hour and it already smelled like him. It wasn't that it smelled particularly bad or anything, it's just that it was _his _smell. For some reason it annoyed Ichigo to no end.

After a long period of tossing, turning, and a lot of cursing, Ichigo finally managed to fall asleep. Unfortunately for him tough, even in his dreams that blue-haired bastard simply refused to leave him alone.

* * *

><p>AN: This fic will probably have around 25 to 30 chapters, which will be spread over three parts. I have Act 1, which contains the first ten chapters, mostly planned out. I'm not entirely sure yet of how exactly I'm going to continue after that, but I have a general idea. I don't have a regular update schedule, and school is driving me positively insane so updates will probably be few and far between, but I'll do my best.<p>

**Terms used:**

Soten Kisshun: Orihime's 'healing' technique. Forms an oval-shaped bubble around the target and rejects any physical damage it has sustained.

Shihakusho: The black uniform worn by Soul Reapers. Specifically, the top part of it.


	3. Shattered Peace

**Chapter 3: Shattered Peace**

Ichigo stood in front of Urahara Shoten, grudgingly staring at the entrance to the shop. Only now that he was already here did he realize that there wasn't really anything he'd be able to do.  
><em>He might react to your presence, <em>Urahara's earlier words rang in his mind. _Yeah right, _Ichigo grumpily thought to himself._ A guy in a coma is suddenly gonna snap right out of it just because I'm in there with him. He probably won't even know I'm there_. He would rather still be in bed right now than out here, most likely wasting his time.

Just as he was starting to consider going back home and hope that this whole mess would simply sort itself out, the shop's front door slid open halfway. A blond head peeked out from the opening, without the signature hat for once.

"Kurosaki-san!" Urahara cheerfully called out as he fully opened the door and stepped into view. "I'm so glad you decided to come! Our guest hasn't budged an inch all night, I'm afraid," he pouted immaturely. "Perhaps that will change when he senses your Reiatsu nearby?" He looked expectantly at Ichigo, holding his fan in such a way that his eyes were the only visible part of his face. Seeing the man act all innocent only served to annoy Ichigo even more.

Either way, it looked like he wasn't going back home now. He started walking in Urahara's direction with a steely conviction in his step. He still had a score to settle, after all. Once within striking distance, Ichigo planted his fist firmly in his mentor's face. He was pleased to hear a loud crack when Urahara's nose broke.

Urahara yelped in surprise as he stumbled backwards before falling flat on his ass. Ichigo could certainly throw one hell of a punch."Ow! Wha' was dat for?" Urahara whined at him from the floor, clutching his broken nose. He looked like at Ichigo like a kicked puppy.

"For not telling me about the cameras." The teen briskly walked past him, not granting the man a second glance. He made his way through the candy store, heading towards the door labeled 'private' at the back. After closing it behind him, he kicked off his shoes and headed straight for the spare bedroom that doubled as infirmary. He had been in there himself quite a few times, sporting different but always potentially life-threatening injuries each time. As he entered the room, he was greeted by a familiar scene.

There he was. Grimmjow was lying on a futon Urahara had provided him with, not moving a muscle aside from the steady rising and falling of his chest as he breathed.

Ichigo softly slid the paper door shut behind him before going over to Grimmjow's side. During all the excitement yesterday he hadn't really noticed it, but Grimmjow looked quite different from the last time he had seen him. His normally vibrant, electric blue hair looked greasy and lifeless now. It was a lot longer than it was the last time they had met too; not taking his Resurrección into account, of course. That had been worse than a freaking Super Saiyan transformation.  
>His hair now framed his face, no longer being held up by hair gel. A few of the longer strands fell over Grimmjow's closed eyes. Ichigo also noticed the man had gotten a light stubble.<br>Lowering his gaze to Grimmjow's bare chest, Ichigo noticed that Orihime had also removed the scar he had inflicted on the Espada during the war. He couldn't help but feel slightly relieved upon seeing that. He didn't like being reminded of having hurt the man like that every time he saw him, even if he had deserved it. Urahara's thick metal handcuffs were still in place too, keeping Grimmjow's hands bound.

The teen lowered himself to the floor, sitting cross-legged so he could continue to observe the man. Grimmjow didn't look anything like his usual self while asleep. This was probably the first time he had seen him without a sadistic smirk or angry scowl on his face, both of which had usually been directed at him. Right now he looked completely calm, like he didn't have a care in the world. Ichigo mentally smacked himself; he guessed it was only natural to look like that when you were in a freaking coma.

A loud scream coming from somewhere in the house startled Ichigo. He couldn't help smirking a little when he heard Urahara's yelling. It sounded like Tessai had just set the pervy bastard's nose._  
><em>

He turned his gaze back to the Arrancar before him. The Hollow Hole positioned where the man's stomach should have been had always fascinated him. How the hell was he even supposed to digest his food like this? Even Arrancar still needed to eat, didn't they? Ulquiorra's had been even more absurd for that matter; could you even live without a heart? Or did those organs simply shift to make room for the hole? Or maybe Arrancar's bodies simply functioned in a manner entirely different from a human's, despite the many similarities...

Looking around the room to make sure he wasn't being watched, Ichigo shifted so he was on his knees, and leaned over Grimmjow's body. He stopped once again to listen for any sign of Urahara or other residents of the house heading his way. When everything remained quiet, he slowly pulled back the blanket covering Grimmjow's abdomen and positioned his hand above the Hollow hole. Just thinking about the sexual innuendos that would be made if anyone saw him right now already had him blushing. Ichigo quickly pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and let curiosity get the better of him.  
>The teen experimentally lowered his hand, his heart rate increasing as he did so. He felt a hint of excitement. He knew he shouldn't be doing this, but he just couldn't help himself. His hand finally reached the ground, which somehow made him want to laugh <em>qnd <em>puke. Apparently, you really could go straight through it. Ichigo remembered that NNoitra had managed to evade being gored by Kenpachi's sword due to the convenient location of his own Hollow Hole, but he couldn't just pass up the chance to see for himself.  
>Not entirely satisfied yet, Ichigo decided to try out one more thing.<p>

He silently prayed to whatever god was out there that Grimmjow wouldn't wake up while he did this. He was pretty sure this was harassment.  
>He stuck out one of his fingers, aiming for the black edge of the circle. This was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity to find out more about this, and Ichigo knew that if he didn't take it, this was going to keep bugging him for weeks. He gently poked the black stuff and quickly withdrew his hand. The teen checked if his test subject was still asleep before continuing, and when convinced that he was, pressed his whole hand against the dark edge of the hole.<br>Surprisingly, it felt just like regular skin, except that it was much colder. Almost like Grimmjow's body heat just didn't permeate through that thin black layer.

Satisfied for now, he withdrew his hand and sat back down. He looked around the room, not sure what to say or do. He was alone with an unconscious person after all. A person he wasn't even on good terms with. "Well. This is awkward." He looked at Grimmjow's face. "Can you even.. hear me?" He asked lamely. "Urahara asked me to come, but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be doing here. Grimmjow?" He waited a few moments, hoping to get some sort of response. A groan, a twitch; hell, he'd be happy with 'Piss off, Kurosaki' if it meant he wouldn't have to be alone in this room with Grimmjow anymore. He sighed dejectedly when he didn't get any reaction. He knew this would be a waste of his time.

"Screw it," he muttered to himself, standing up. He dusted himself off and started in the direction of the doorway. Something felt a little off though. Curiously, he looked back at Grimmjow. The man had started breathing heavily, and his fingers were twitching. Somehow, this didn't seem like a good sign to Ichigo. "Grimmjow? You alright?" he asked uneasily. He slowly walked back toward the futon, suddenly feeling worried. Something was definitely wrong here.

His answer came in the form of Grimmjow's body beginning to convulse. "Fuck!" He quickly dropped to his knees at Grimmjow's side and grabbed the man's shoulders to hold him down so he wouldn't injure himself.  
>"Urahara!" He called out in alarm. "Get in here!"<p>

Luckily, the shopkeeper reacted quickly. Accompanied by Tessai and Yoruichi, he burst into the room and the three of them gathered around the bed. Yoruichi helped Ichigo hold Grimmjow down by grabbing his legs while Tessai held his head still. Urahara used a small flashlight to shine light into Grimmjow's eyes. He was checking to see if his eyes would follow the light, but his pupils kept darting around in random directions.

"No response," Urahara muttered under his breath. "Tessai, try to wake him. The circumstances aren't ideal, but at least he's showing some activity now. We may be able to forcefully make him regain consciousness."

"Yes sir," Tessai responded. His fingertips, placed on Grimmjow's temples, started to emit a green aura as he activated his Kido.

If possible, this caused Grimmjow's body to spasm even more violently. Ichigo was strong, but he was in his human form, while Grimmjow was a spirit. It was becoming rather difficult to continue holding him down. While the handcuffs restricted Grimmjow's movements, they didn't leave his arms completely immobile. Ichigo didn't want to get hit in the head with one of those thick metal cuffs; he'd probably end up with a concussion at this rate. So, doing the only thing he could think of, he positioned himself so that his chest was on top of Grimmjow's, with the the other man's arms trapped in between them. It was a mildly awkward experience for Ichigo, considering their faces were just a few inches apart in this position.

"This isn't working" Urahara muttered more to himself than to the other people there. "Tessai. You can stop now. Kurosaki-san, could you move a little?"  
>Ichigo complied, giving Urahara better access to one of Grimmjow's arms. The shopkeeper retrieved a syringe from within his robes and inserted it into Grimmjow's upper arm. The effects were nearly instantaneous: Ichigo could feel Grimmjow's struggling quickly getting weaker, before eventually stopping. Everyone in the room let out a collective sigh as Grimmjow calmed down again.<p>

They all let go of him and sat back, glad it was over. "Well, that was unexpected," Urahara voiced what they were all thinking, waving his fan to cool himself. "I wonder what could have triggered such a reaction. Perhaps Inoue-san wasn't able to finish treating him? Isshin told me that she collapsed from exhaustion yesterday."

"No, that's not it," Ichigo cut in. "She said she was finished. She wouldn't stop until she was, no matter how tired she may have been." He had seen the look in Grimmjow's eyes when Urahara was busy with his flashlight. It was pure terror. "He was having a nightmare." They all looked at him with obvious surprise. "A bad one. It turned into a full-blown panic attack."

"I see," Urahara said, breaking the silence. The shopkeeper seemed to be feeling rather silly about missing something so obvious. He had been too preoccupied with checking on Grimmjow's physical condition to take note of his mental state. "Well, the injection I gave him should induce a dreamless sleep. That should offer him some relief."

"Makes you wonder though," Yoruichi interrupted. "What kind of a monster is so damn terrifying that it gave one of the freaking Espada nightmares?"

They all shared a worried look as they realized how right she was. Up until now, Ichigo had thought Grimmjow had just gotten careless and was overwhelmed by enemies, or had gotten cocky and challenged someone that was simply too strong for him. But for something to scare one of the most reckless Espada so badly it led to a panic attack? Ichigo had to admit he wasn't keen to come face-to-face with what had attacked Grimmjow.

"Anyway, we're going to need more information," Urahara spoke up. "Yoruichi, are you ready to take off?"

She nodded curtly before changing into her cat form, leaving a pile of clothes behind where she had been sitting. A black cat crawled out of the top she had been wearing just a second before.

"Wait, where are you going?" Ichigo asked her.

"To Soul Society. I'm going to ask Soi Fon to help me investigate." Even after hearing it so many times, the low, male voice of Yoruichi's cat form still managed to startle him. "Whatever did this to our friend here needs to be found, before it becomes a threat to others. I'm sure the Gotei would be willing to help if we explain the situation. Although..." She looked at Grimmjow. "Perhaps we should, ah, omit some of the details."

Urahara nodded. "Right. If the Gotei found out about us harboring an Espada, they'd be here to raid Karakura Town before we even knew what was happening." He turned to his assistant. "Tessai. The sedative I gave him should wear off in about thirty minutes. When it does, continue using your Kido to try and wake him up. He's our most valuable source of information right now, we need him conscious."

"Yes, Urahara-dono."

"In the meantime, I'm going to be making a little trip down to Hueco Mundo. I found traces of foreign Reiryoku on Jaegerjaques-san when I examined him this morning. Perhaps I'll be able to track our target down using my equipment." He tilted his head, so that his eyes were hidden by the shadow of his hat again, giving him that whole mysterious look. Ichigo was certain he did it on purpose. "I'm pretty sure that the Reiatsu belongs to an Arrancar, or maybe even a Vizard, but some of the values my equipment measured..." Urahara trailed off.

"Save the technical stuff for later Kisuke. We have work to do." The black cat wandered off toward the wall, putting her paw against it. Some white ripples appeared on the wall, similar to the effect you got when you threw a stone into a body of water. A clicking sound was heard and a Senkaimon materialized before them, taking up most of the wall.

"You're welcome to join me, Ichigo. I believe it's been a while since you've seen your friends. They've been very busy with the aftermath of the war after all." The cat sat down in front of the portal, wagging it's tail a little as it waited for Ichigo.

"Yeah, sure." He took the Combat Pass from his pants pocket and pressed it against his chest. His body slumped to the floor as his spirit was released, but Urahara managed to catch it before it suffered any damages. Ichigo rolled his shoulders, trying to get used to the sensation of being a Shinigami again. No matter how many times he jumped in and out of his body, the transition still felt weird every single time.

"Alright then," Yoruichi nodded approvingly. "Try to keep up." And with that, the cat entered the portal and disappeared from view.

"Later, Urahara. Take care of my body, would ya?" Ichigo followed, hastily entering the Senkaimon before it closed.

"Sure thing!" the shopkeeper replied with a grin while waving at them wih his fan.

* * *

><p>The trip through the Dangai was an uneventful one. They just kept running through the dark, slimy tunnel, keeping their thoughts to themselves. Ichigo knew that what had happened with Grimmjow just now would be on his mind for a while. Luckily, he didn't have much time to mull it over; with their speed, the pair reached the other side in record time.<p>

Once they had passed through the Senkaimon on Soul society's side, they slowed their pace and leisurely walked between the throngs of Shinigami around them. Yoruichi jumped up to his shoulder to avoid getting trampled. Ichigo was surprised to see a few random Shinigami waving at him or calling out to him. A few female admirers were even shamelessly pointing at him and giggling.

"You certainly seem to be popular around here," Yoruichi teased him from her spot on his shoulder. "When are you finally going to get yourself laid? Being the hero that took down Aizen does have its perks, you know."

"Shut up!" he snapped at her, his face bright as a tomato. "I didn't come here for that!"

"You really should loosen up a little. Don't want to die a virgin, do you?" she asked innocently.  
>"I'm going to strangle you with your own tail if you don't stop talking." He threatened.<p>

Yoruichi huffed indignantly. "Stick in the mud," she muttered. He could _hear _her pouting, even if she was physically incapable of doing so in her cat form. Her ears suddenly perked up as she sensed something. "Seems they already know we're here."

She lifted a paw, and Ichigo looked in the direction she indicated. Despite there being over a hundred Soul Reapers around them, he instantly noticed Renji's crimson red hair calling out to them like a beacon from within the sea of bodies. How Yoruichi had managed to detect his Reiatsu with all this interference around them was entirely beyond him.

"I'll go check with Soi Fon to see if the Captains already know something. You should go catch up with your friends... Oh, and say hi to Byakuya for me if you see him," she added mischievously. She jumped down from his shoulder, quickly disappearing in a burst of Shunpo.

And with that, Yoruichi was gone, only to be replaced by Renji shortly after. "Ichigo! Why the hell didn't you let us know you were coming?" He asked by manner of greeting.

"Well, I wasn't exactly planning on it," He huffed. "Yoruichi just asked me to tag along with her if I wanted to... What's that look for?" he asked upon noticing Renji's suspicious stare.

"Well, when you arrive unexpectedly it's usually not because you're bringing good news" Renji said accusingly. "So, what is it this time? Come to unmask another captain that went traitor? Maybe a major Hollow invasion that's coming up?"

"What, I can't just come over to say hi? You guys showed up in my room uninvited hundreds of times," Ichigo retorted, even though he had to admit Renji was sort of right. "Is it that much of a crime for me to want to hang out with you guys while I still can?" That last part had slipped out before Ichigo could stop himself. Damn. That was one way to ruin the mood.

Renji's face fell noticeably, slightly ashamed that he had forgotten about his friend's unstable Reiatsu. "Sorry. Didn't mean it to come out like that." he rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Anyway, let's just go meet up with Rukia at the barracks. She should be back from her mission by now. Better head there fast," he whispered conspiratorially, "before Captain Zaraki shows up." He shuddered at the mere thought of running into that psychopath right now.

The tangerine smiled. "Alright. But something's been bothering me. How did you know I was here so quickly?" He asked as they started walking. It had only been a little over four minutes since he transformed into a Shinigami. Did Soul Society place a tracking device on him or something? He was on good terms with the Gotei, but he certainly wouldn't put it past them to do so.

"Squad twelve notified us that your Reiatsu had been signaled in the Dangai" Renji stated matter-of-factly. "Kuchiki-taicho told me to go find out why you were here and then take the rest of the day off so I could- and I quote: keep you the hell away from him." He grinned saucily as Ichigo laughed.

"The almighty, stick-up-the-ass captain Kuchiki actually said a bad word? You must be rubbing off on him." He thought back to the whole situation with Grimmjow's attacker. "Actually, this may just be some sort of a major bad omen." Renji shot him a questioning look, but Ichigo ignored him.

They headed in the direction of Squad 13's barracks at a slow, comfortable pace. Renji did most of the talking, telling Ichigo about the changes Soul Society was going through. Three new captains still had to be appointed, and though Renji himself wasn't quite ready for the job yet, Byakuya had started training with him after hours so that he would one day be worthy of wearing a White Haori too. Renji seemed excited at the thought of having his own squad, but would rather stay under his Captain's command for now. He still dreamed of surpassing that man someday.

Ichigo reluctantly had to admit he rather enjoyed the other man's rambling. He didn't see him nearly as often as he used to during the war, so it was nice to be able to catch up like this.

"So, Ichigo. Is there really no other reason you came here? You keep spacing out, man. Don't tell me you're not thinking about something."

Damn. If even Renji noticed, he wasn't being very subtle about this. "Alright, it's true that I need to talk to you about something," he admitted, "In fact, it's possible this could get pretty ugly. But I don't wanna tell the same story twice, so let's find Rukia first, okay?"

Renji didn't seem satisfied with that answer, but decided to let it rest for now. Normally he would've kept pushing his friend until he spilled the beans, but seeing how serious Ichigo was made him give in. The barracks weren't that much further anyway, he wouldn't have to wait for long. "Fine. I'll hold you to that."

The rest of the walk, Ichigo was forced to listen to his friend's tales about Byakuya Kuchiki, the best, strongest, most handsome captain of the thirteen Court Guard Squads. Okay, maybe that was overdoing it a little, but still. Byakuya seemed to be the only thing that was on the redhead's mind today.

"Oh, and yesterday Kuchiki-taicho actually invited me over for dinner! Our training ran a little late, and we were close to his mansion anyway, so he just blurted it out. I didn't know what to do, I mean, I'm just a Rukongai street rat, I don't fit in with the Nobles, I'd probably just embarrass myself _and_ captain Kuchiki. But he-"

"Renji," Ichigo started, finally having had enough, "I'm happy that he's finally starting to act like a human being and that he's opening up to you, really, I am, but if you say Byakuya's name one more time I'm going to have to hurt you", he deadpanned. Admiring the man was one thing, but Renji was starting to get obsessed.

Renji scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. He had been rambling like a lovestruck schoolgirl this whole time, which didn't really fit his image. "Sorry. It's just... the man that I've been looking up to almost my whole life finally sees me as an equal. That's a big thing for me, you know?"

He sighed. Of course he knew, surpassing Byakuya was Renji's life goal, and his determination was one of the things Ichigo respected him for. "Yeah, yeah, I know. But with the way you can't stop talking about him, it's almost like you have a little crush on that captain of yours..." the tangerine said innocently, but he was grinning deviously as he did so. After being forced to listen to all that, he felt like a little teasing was in order.

Renji's cheeks reddened, which heavily diminished the force behind the redhead's glare. "Are you saying I'm into guys?" he grit out dangerously.

"I dunno, but I _do _get a certain gay vibe when I hear you talk about _c__aptain Kuchiki_ like that." Ichigo said innocently, taking extra care to address Byakuya by his proper title like Renji had been doing.

Renji's Reiatsu intensified slightly. "You asshole..." He gritted out from between clenched teeth. One of his eyebrows was twitching. "_I'm_ the gay one? I can't even remember the last time_ you _showed any interest in girls," he grinned wickedly at Ichigo. Somehow, the tables been turned. "You even had a girl living in your bedroom closet for _months_ and didn't try anything."

Ichigo couldn't believe what he was hearing. "A girl?" He retorted disbelievingly. "This is Rukia we're talking about!"

"Care to repeat that?" A sugary sweet voice sounded from behind Ichigo. "I didn't quite catch that last bit."

Ichigo gulped nervously. The positively feral grin Renji was sending him pretty much confirmed his fears. "H-hey there, Rukia!" he stuttered as he slowly turned around. Soon enough, the petite Shinigami came into focus. "Long time no see, huh?"

"Why Ichigo! It's been far too long indeed!" The sickly sweet smile she was still boasting told Ichigo he was in for a world of hurt. "So what were you talking about? Something about not thinking of me as a girl?"

"N-no! That's not what I meant at all!" He stammered desperately, already taking a few steps back as a precaution. "I meant that - I mean, what I meant say was - Oh fuck it," he said, giving up and awaiting punishment. A powerful kick aimed right at his face sent him flying. He bumped into Renji, and pretty soon they were both sprawled out on the ground, staring up at a smirking Rukia.

"Ow," was all Renji managed to say. He had gotten hit by Ichigo's full body weight, and was currently pinned down under said Shinigami. It was a good thing he had such a hard head.

Ichigo managed to right himself, rubbing his head as he did so. "What, no follow-up?" he joked somewhat suicidally when Rukia just stood there, unable to contain her smile.

"Nah. I'm in too good of a mood right now to let myself be bothered by anything you idiots say," she explained happily.

"Oh? Did something good happen?"

"I-" she started to say, pulling something out from her uniform, "just got one _hell_ of a promotion."

She was holding a shiny new lieutenant's badge.

* * *

><p>"To Rukia!"<p>

Renji's words were repeated by all the Soul Reapers that had gathered, accompanied by the gesture of lifting their sake cups in the air. Rukia herself smiled brightly at the people around her, slightly blushing at all the attention she was receiving. As soon as the news got out, the other lieutenants had decided to throw a little party in a popular, western-styled bar in Seireitei to celebrate her promotion.

"Oi, Ichigo! Why aren't you drinking with us? Loosen up, man!" came Renji's reaction when he saw his friend drinking water.

"Renji, I'm only 16. I can't drink yet, remember?" He was getting a little annoyed with people telling him to loosen up.

"But this is a party! Besides, that's only a rule in the Human World isn't it?" Renji reasoned.

Ichigo just rolled his eyes, deciding to ignore the other man for now. He had his reasons for deciding not to drink. He leaned forward a bit, so he could put his arms on the smooth surface of the wooden bar. Captain Kyoraku smiled at him from his seat at the far left side of the bar before downing his own, rather large cup of liquor in one go.

Apparently lieutenant Ise had accidentally let it slip to her captain that there would be drinking involved, so Shunsui had promptly ran off to Squad 13's barracks and came right back with a reluctant captain Ukitake. Since their captains had shown up, many people from their squads had decided to follow suit. Since it was rare for something like this to happen in the usually mundane lives of the Soul Reapers, the news had spread like wildfire. Any excuse was good enough for the Shinigami to get away from their problems for a little while. Of course, the rumor that a certain Substitute Soul Reaper was there helped quite a bit in getting the female (and part of the male) population of Seireitei interested. What had started out with just a few people, soon grew to be a gathering of epic proportions: within a couple of hours, what seemed like half of the entire Gotei 13 had gathered in and around the bar where Ichigo and his friends were. The barkeep was nearly crying with joy.

Things had gotten a little stressful when Kenpachi showed up, followed by the usual trio, but oddly enough the man wasn't in the mood for a fight. When Ichigo asked Ikkaku what was up with his Captain, the man explained that he had apparently tried out some new shampoo, which had unfortunately made his hair too silky to style it the way he usually does, so he had been moping around for the last couple of days. However, once they'd caught wind of the party that was going on, Yumichika and Ikkaku had pretty much forced their captain to 'get off his ass and go have some fun'. Yachiru had heard the word 'party' and instantly attached herself to Kenpachi, forcing him to attend since she refused to let go.

When their eyes met, Kenpachi just threw an unenthusiastic glance at Ichigo and nodded to him before sitting down at a random table. His third and fifth seats were already talking to one of the employees at the bar, planning on bringing back as much alcoholic beverages as they could carry. Along with some juice for Yachiru, of course.

Toushiro had come in looking for his lieutenant, who had once again conveniently forgotten about the mountains of paperwork piled up on her desk. After realizing she was too drunk to even hold a pen, the boy had simply given up and started talking to the Substitute Shinigami. He had gotten rather used to situations like these over the years, so he knew it was all wasted effort.

Even Byakuya made an entrance, although he stuck out like a sore thumb between all the party-goers. Renji decided to take pity on him and laid an arm around his shoulders - obviously getting some liquid courage from all the cups of sake he had ingested - and dragged him towards the bar with the intention of getting him nice and drunk. Hah, good luck with that one.

It wasn't long until Yoruichi showed up as well, heading straight for the bar with the objective of getting as high a dose of alcohol into her bloodstream in as little time possible, and annoy the crap out of Byakuya while she was at it. Trailing behind her like a lost puppy was Soi Fon. She was pleading with Yoruichi to get back to work, but all her complaints were brushed off. After downing no less than three glasses of hard liquor in a row, Yoruichi got a faint blush on her cheeks, and decided that it was simply too hot in here for her to be wearing so much clothes. A thick crowd of mostly male Shinigami (and Soi Fon) gathered around her within seconds, completely obscuring the dark-skinned woman from view. Luckily for the non-perverted Soul Reapers in the bar.

* * *

><p>Before Ichigo even realized it, night had already set in. Looking around, he saw that captain Komamura had joined the party at some time during the evening, and was now talking animatedly with Ukitake. Captain Kyoraku lay face down on their table, having already passed out long ago. He was currently busy drooling all over the table. Upon noticing, Ukitake lifted his best friend's head and shoved a napkin under it before continuing his conversation with Komamura as if nothing had happened, making Ichigo chuckle.<p>

It was certainly unusual to see so many of the captains letting go like that. They must have needed it after all the stress the war had brought them. The war. Fuck.

Grimmjow.

What was he going to do about the blue-haired Arrancar? He obviously couldn't stay at Urahara's forever. Neither could they let him return to Hueco Mundo, Grimmjow was far too dangerous to be given free reign. Ichigo had intended to ask his friends for their opinions on the matter, but Renji seemed too busy hanging over Byakuya, who still looked as dignified as ever (Aside from a small, nearly invisible smile), and Rukia was being... well, Rukia.

She and Yachiru were busy making Chappy the Bunny drawings, which due to her alcohol-induced state, were worse than ever. Which was saying a lot, actually. It was pretty amusing to see her like that. She even had the courage to talk to Captain Zaraki, telling him his now-silky hair looked pretty like that. Ichigo nearly spit out his drink upon seeing the intimidating ogre of a man look away with a hint of red on his cheeks and a smile tugging at his lips.

It seemed that he and Toshiro were the only ones still sober. If Hollows decided to invade right now, Soul Society was fucked. Although, if that did happen, Yamamoto would probably just burn every last one of the invaders to ashes. And right after he was done with that, do the same thing to the captains who had been too drunk to do anything about it.

Suddenly, Rangiku fell in his lap, snapping him back into reality. "Oh! Hey, Ichigo! Wanna dance?" It came out as a question, but she didn't give the teen much choice. Before he knew it, she had dragged him to the more open area of the bar which was used as a dance floor and started doing something that could only be vaguely described as dancing.

He threw an apologetic glance at Toshiro for leaving him like that, but the young captain didn't seem to mind. The boy did however bow his head in shame upon seeing his lieutenant's behavior. He didn't care how hung-over she would be tomorrow, he would make her finish every last assignment that was waiting for her on her desk if it was the last thing he did.

Ichigo stayed on the dance floor for a good twenty minutes, occasionally switching it up with some other members of the Shinigami Women's association that kept insisting he dance with them next. At one point, even Renji had come up to him and dragged him around the room in his own version of a Waltz. Ichigo wasn't planning on ever letting him live that one down. Especially not when at the end Renji suddenly bowed down and kissed the back of Ichigo's outstretched hand before running off, laughing like a maniac. A flash had gone off somewhere in the crowd, and Ichigo had the sneaking suspicion that a picture of him and Renji was going to be used as the November background for the Women's Association's calendar for next year.

He was enjoying himself and all, but when Rangiku suddenly decided to come over and hug him for no apparent reason, Ichigo felt like he needed some fresh air. Literally. Those things of hers had nearly choked him.  
>He slowly made his way through the crowd, but once outside, came to the realization that there were just as much people out in the street as there were in the bar. Not feeling like wading through the endless mass of bodies, he jumped up to the roof off the bar and navigated his way through the Seireitei from there. He sensed Toshiro's Reiatsu a little further up ahead, and decided to head over there. The young captain must have gotten tired of all the people too.<p>

He found him in a small park, just staring up at the full moon.

"Hey Toshiro," he said as he landed next to him.

"That's captain Hitsugaya to you." The monotone way in which he said it made it obvious he wasn't expecting Ichigo to actually do so. It was really just a force of habit by now.

They could still hear the music in the distance, but it had dulled to become mere background noise.

"I should probably be heading home," Ichigo started. "It must be late, and I bet my sister's worried about me by now."

Toshiro merely nodded. "Do you mind if I accompany you to the Senkaimon? I mean, it is on the way to the barracks."

Ichigo couldn't help but smile at the boy's lame attempt at hiding the fact that he just felt like hanging out with him a little longer. He knew the young captain would be making a detour; Squad ten's barracks were more to the west, while the Senkaimon was located north of here. He decided not to say anything about it and just nodded. They both Flash Stepped away, blowing some grass up into the air due to the air displacement.

They hadn't even gotten more than twenty meters from where they started when they both stopped dead in their tracks.

They turned around, and were faced by a great, green lightning bolt lighting up the night sky. It was rather unlike regular lightning; not just in that it was green, but also that it traveled diagonally rather than vertically, and seemed to originate from somewhere on the ground. To be more precise, from the First Division barracks.

The pair didn't hesitate for even a second and quickly ran back in the direction they had come from, heading for the source of the lightning at top speed. As they came closer, an unfamiliar Reiatsu began pressing down on them, becoming stronger as they neared their destination. The Head Captain's Reiatsu could be clearly felt as well, which could mean only one thing, namely that shit had just hit the fan.

Thunderclouds started overhead, quickly joining together to create a thick, dark gray blanket that blocked out the light of the moon. Even though it didn't start raining, bright green lightning now flashed in a rather large area around Squad 1's barracks, setting multiple buildings ablaze.

The Spiritual Pressure from several other captains could already be felt moving in the direction of the Squad 1 barracks, but Ichigo and Toshiro would most likely be the first to arrive. He just hoped they would be in time. The Head Captain could obviously take care of himself just fine, but the Reiatsu pressing down on them made it clear that this was a threat to be taken seriously.

When they finally reached their destination, they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Most of the buildings in the area were utterly destroyed, others were quickly going up in flames. In the center of the chaos stood Yamamoto, surrounded by a blazing inferno.

"Sotaicho!"

"Jii-san!"

"Stay back!" Yamamoto barked at them. "This is far too dangerous for children such as yourself to be involved in!"

"He's right, you know." The voice came from right behind them, making them both instinctively jump to the side and draw their swords. So this was the source of the unfamiliar Reiatsu. Before them stood a rather tall man with shoulder-length, straight brown hair and stormy gray eyes, wearing the standard Shinigami uniform. In human years, he looked to be around 19, maybe 20. In his right hand he held a blade that was noticeably longer than the average Zanpakutou, but not quite long enough to be labeled a Nodachi. It was crackling with green lightning, in much the same way Ryuujin Jakka was currently engulfed by it's own flames. "You kiddies should just run off. Me and Yama-jii have some unfinished business to take care of," the stranger stated rather calmly, smiling serenely as he did so.

"Like hell I will!" Ichigo, with temper already flaring, tightened his grip on Zangetsu. "Who are you anyway?" Ichigo demanded. Before the young man could answer his question, some new arrivals interrupted their conversation.

"Genryuusai-dono!" Komamura, excuse the pun, barked.

"Katsumi?! Is that you?" a very surprised Ukitake called out from somewhere behind Ichigo.

The other captains and Yoruichi appeared all around them in a flurry of Shunpo, most having already drawn their swords, some even releasing them as soon as they saw who their opponent would be.

"Did I just hear my name? Ah, of course! Ukitake-san, you'd remember." The young man now identified as Katsumi turned around and started walking towards Ukitake, seemingly without a care in the world. Rather strange behavior for someone surrounded by the most powerful beings in this dimension."It's only been like, what? A hundred and twelve years? How have you been holding up?" He asked conversationally.

"I've had better days," the white-haired captain bitterly replied. "Why are you here? Have you come to take your revenge on Yama-jii?"

"Of course I am," he replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "The bastard sold me out to the Central 46, tried to have me killed, and then sealed me away when he figured it would be too troublesome for him to finish the job," he hissed. "By the way, it's not nice to attack someone in the middle of a conversation, Shunsui," the young man stated calmly. He turned his head to look at something Ichigo didn't see.

Captain Kyoraku emerged from the shadows behind Katsumi, smiling wryly. "Still as observant as ever, I see, Captain Takahashi." How the hell did he know he was there? Ichigo hadn't even noticed that Captain Kyoraku wasn't standing next to Komamura anymore. _Wait a minute, did he just say Captain?_

"I may not know who you are or what happened between you and Genryuusai-dono, but I will not let you harm him! Bankai!" More flames erupted from behind captain Komamura, and his massive Bankai slowly emerged from them. "Kokujo Tengen Myo-oh!"

"Komamura-taicho, you mustn't!" Unohana tried to stop him, but it was too late. The giant's blade slammed down into the ground, right where Takahashi had been standing just a second earlier.

"Now THAT is an impressive Bankai. Let's see how it does against this; Hado number 88: Hiryu Gekizoku Shinten Raiho." A massive beam of blue energy was fired from behind Komamura's Bankai, piercing straight through the giant's stomach. Komamura cried out as the damage was relayed unto him as well, and a large hole opened up in his abdomen. Both the giant and his wielder let go of their swords as they dropped to their knees, defeated by just one attack.

The air itself smelt burnt. Ichigo couldn't believe the power behind that spell. And he hadn't even used an incantation. Just who the hell was this guy?

"Ouch. Too bad it has such an unfortunate side-effect," he said to Komamura with a sympathetic expression. "Well, one down, eleven to go", the brunet almost cheerfully said as he walked back over to the rest of the captains. Kokujo Tengen Myo-oh was already breaking down into red particles as he walked past it. In the blink of an eye, the captains had surrounded him once again. In the meantime, Unohana cast Bakudo number 73: Tozansho in order to form a barrier in the shape of an inverted blue pyramid around herself and Captain Komamura while she worked to close the wound before he bled out.

Ichigo and Yoruichi reluctantly stayed back with Yamamoto, knowing better than to get involved with the captains right now; their ally had nearly been killed right under their noses - this had become a personal matter now. Well, maybe not for Kurotsuchi. That bastard probably just wanted the young man for his experiments.

Takahashi looked around the circle of angry captains, pausing when his gaze landed on the sadistically smirking Kurotsuchi. "What the hell is wrong your face?" he questioned seriously.

_Now _it was personal. Kyoraku was the first to move: he sunk into the shadow underneath him, disappearing from view once again while Ukitake jumped up high into the air, starting an incantation. Soi Fon disappeared in a flicker of Shunpo, creating over a dozen clones of herself all around the battlefield. Byakuya cast Bakudo sixty-one, -two and -three in rapid succession, immobilizing the ex-Captain by binding him with chains, spearing him with Hyapporankan and holding him in place with six rods of light that rammed into his abdomen. It looked like this fight was just about over.

"What, that's it?" the invader shocked them all by breaking the golden chains around him without any effort whatsoever, at the same time shattering the six rods of light protruding from his waist with just a flick of his wrist. He Flash Stepped out of the way of Ukitake's Raikoho, not bothered in the least by the three glowing bars Byakuya's Hyapporankan had skewered him with.

Soi Fon's clones disappeared as the original appeared right behind him, stabbing Takahashi between the shoulder blades with Suzumebachi and causing a Homonka to appear. "Die!" She stabbed the center of the black Hornet's Crest once again, but to everyone's immense surprise, nothing happened.

"'Death in two stings', huh? I remember hearing about that ability of yours when I was still a Captain. Too bad it only works when your Reiatsu is at least on the same level as your opponent's."

Yoruichi was unable to prevent a shocked gasp from escaping as she watched her former subordinate get struck down by a massive lightning bolt. Apparently Takahashi's Shikai allowed him to rather precisely control where the lightning struck as well, and not just create it. The petite captain was breathing heavily; at least she was still alive, although it would be a while before she would be able to move again.

"That makes two," Takashi solemnly stated as he stared at Soi Fon. He seemed conflicted about what do with her. He probably knew she wasn't completely incapacitated yet.

However, that slight hesitation had given the captains the opening they needed. Kyoraku's blade suddenly jutted out of the shadow behind Takahashi, going straight through his calf and coming out the front of his leg. The young man screamed in pain as he dropped to his knee. Good, the captains had finally managed to do some damage. The opportunity was quickly taken by Kurotsuchi, who planted Ashisogi Jizo deep in the young man's back before distancing himself a little, leaving his sword there. "Bastard..." The apparently ex-Captain grit out. He glared at Kurotsuchi, and another bolt of lightning came from the sky to strike the mad scientist down. For some reason, the lightning-bolt changed direction only a few inches above Kurotsuchi's head and was redirected into the ground.

"Don't even bother trying to hit me with that lightning of yours," the sadistic captain gleefully spoke. "Now that I've seen how it works, it won't have any effect on me anymore.",

"I see. Why don't I try this then." He raised his left hand with two fingers pointing upwards. It was the same gesture Aizen had used many months earlier. "Kurohitsugi."

Even the mad scientist hadn't been prepared for that. A look of shock could clearly be seen on his face as the walls of a large, black box erupted from the ground around him, closing him in.

"And that's three."

Once completely formed, sharp protrusions appeared on the walls of the coffin, lacerating the captain inside from all directions. The box broke apart in wisps of black smoke, revealing Kurotsuchi, appearing to be unscathed. Well, for a second at least. Wounds suddenly opened up all over his body, reducing the man to a bloody heap on the ground.

"Bankai!" Two men spoke simultaneously. In an unusual display of teamwork, Ichigo charged at the invader with all he had, with Byakuya acting as his backup. Ichigo didn't care about their stupid honor anymore. Three captains had just gone down easily; they were going to need all the help they could get.

The area became even darker as over a hundred blades rose from the ground in two straight lines beside Byakuya. "Senbonzakura Kageyoshi." The blades separated into an uncountable amount of cherry blossoms, swirling all around the group of people before gathering around Byakuya, circling him like a violent torrent.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" A black crescent was fired at Takahashi with incredible speed. "Danku," Takahashi quickly spoke, pain lacing his voice. The attack impacted harmlessly against the translucent screen. Ichigo himself, however, easily broke through the weakened barrier with a powerful slash of his sword and headed straight for Takahashi, who still hadn't been able to get back up. The brunet made a slashing motion with his Zanpakutou, and a green ball of energy that had gathered on the tip of the sword was fired at Ichigo, who's instinctual reaction was to bat it away with his own blade.

Bad idea. Very, _very_ bad idea.

The orb exploded with the force of a bomb, electrocuting Ichigo all over his body as he was flung back in the direction he came from.

"Gokei, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi," Byakuya spoke up.

Ichigo was caught in mid-air by Yoruichi, who safely set him, as well as Soi Fon, down on the ground a good distance away from the fight. They watched as Byakuya's attack caught Takahashi in a swirling mass of Sakura petals. The petals gained speed as the orb became smaller, and eventually collapsed in on itself. The explosion that followed was enormous: Captains Kyoraku and Ukitake, the latter carrying Kurotsuchi, joined them where they were standing to prevent getting caught in the blast. Unohana was even forced to put another barrier in front of the inverted pyramid she and Komamura were in.

The petals slowly fell to the ground around Takahashi, who still sat in the same spot, now bleeding heavily from cuts that had appeared all over his person. The glowing bars the sixth squad's captain had tried to immobilize him with earlier had been shattered during the attack.

"Damn... that hurt." Despite his injuries, he shakily got back up, using his sword as leverage. "I'm impressed... you've grown a lot, Byakuya-kun. If I hadn't used that shielding spell just now, I would have been dead for sure." He reached behind him with his free hand, pulling Ashisogi Jizo (which had returned to its sealed state) out of his body with a pained gasp as he looked at Byakuya. "However, it still won't be enough." He threw the sword in a random direction before bringing a bloody hand to his face. Dark-purple Reishi quickly gathered around it.

"No way... no fucking way!" Ichigo got up off the ground as he watched a Hollow mask form on their opponent's face.

Suddenly, fire raged up in a circle around the brunet, blowing the Sakura petals away. They swarmed towards the hilt Byakuya was still holding, reforming into a blade. "So you still have that accursed power?" Yamamoto had finally had enough. He walked through the only opening in the wall of flames, which disappeared as soon as he was through, locking both combatants in.

"**Well, look who decided to show up. I thought I'd have to defeat at least two more of your subordinates before you'd decide to get off your lazy ass and fight me yourself."**

The people that were still capable of doing so, jumped up into the air so they would be able to see what was happening in the center of the inferno. Multiple shocked gasps were heard as they saw Takahashi's fully formed mask. It was an unusually large mask that covered even the sides of his head. Five spikes protruded backward from it, one from the top, two from eye-level, and another pair that followed his jawline. It was mostly bone-white, aside from a single purple line that ran from the tip of the lower right spike up to the closest eye hole.

Ichigo didn't want to believe it. The mask was one thing, that could easily be a fake, but he could never mistake that creepy, double tone in the man's voice or the twisted Reiatsu pressing down on him that felt as much like a Soul Reaper's as it did a Hollow's.

Takahashi was a Vizard.

* * *

><p><strong>Terms: <strong>

Haori: The white garment captains wear over the standard uniform.

Sotaicho: Japanese version of Captain Commander/ Head Captain.

Reishi: The spiritual equivalent of atoms.


	4. Powerless

**Chapter 4: Powerless**

"What do you intend to do now?" Yamamoto's gruff voice boomed, clearly understandable even over the roaring of the fires that surrounded them. "Even you should realize by now that you can't win. It was foolish to take on all the other captains by yourself to begin with, but to try and fight me with such wounds is madness, even if you use that forbidden power."

Takahashi chuckled darkly in response. The sound was distorted due to his Hollowfication, making it sound positively eerie. The clouds above them slowly turned darker as the flashes of green lightning were replaced by dark purple ones. The texture of the heavy Reiatsu around them changed considerably as well, now feeling much more violent and menacing. **"Yama-jii, I'm disappointed. Did you honestly believe I'd try to fight the strongest Shinigami in all of Soul Society like this? I just needed to lure you out first, that's all." **If what he said was true, then he had only attacked the other captains because they had interfered in his battle with Yamamoto.

Ichigo's mind was still reeling from the discovery that there was another Vizard even Hirako's group didn't know about - or perhaps they did, but hadn't told him for whatever reason - but what happened next was something none of them could have possibly been prepared for.

"**Shatter the sky, Hyperion!"** Takahashi pointed his blade at the heavens as he called out the release command. He was already using his Shikai, and Ichigo knew of only one other thing that required such a command. Thunder roared as electricity gathered in the center of the swirling mass of clouds, directly above Takahashi. From the maelstrom, a wicked purple bolt came crashing down, attracted to his sword like it was a lightning rod, and splitting open the earth at his feet. The hellishly bright light forced everyone to look away. The thunder was deafening. Ichigo's ears were ringing, and the bolt of searing hot plasma had converted much of the oxygen into ozon. It smelled and tasted like Ichigo was breathing in fire.

Ichigo half-expected the lightning strike to have incinerated the young man, but he knew that would have been far too easy. Indeed, a deep, guttural breath could be heard and a large silhouette slowly became visible as the light died down.

The violent Reiatsu weighing down on them became absolutely crushing. Combined with the Captain-Commander's own overwhelming Spiritual Pressure, it was almost too much for Ichigo to handle. He was lucky to have such a vast supply of Spiritual Power, but he could see how even a few of the captains were starting to be affected. He could only imagine what is had to be like for the regular troops that were still in and around the barracks.  
>With the bright light finally gone, Ichigo looked at where Takahashi had been standing. What he saw could not longer be called a man; glaring at the shocked observers from behind its mask was a beast with pale white skin and glowing, purple eyes. The mask had enlarged so that it now covered almost its entire head, leaving only one opening just above his neck. From there, black, bony tendrils fell down its back in a twisted imitation of human hair, reaching just past its shoulder-blades.<p>

The top part of Takahahi's Shihakusho had been ripped to shreds during the transformation, revealing a white, heavily muscled chest with a gaping hole located where his Solar Plexus should have been. From the hole, two thick, black lines climbed up to his shoulders before creeping down his back, intertwining just below the neck and traveling further down along his spine. The lines narrowed and joined together as they went lower, stopping just short of his Hakama. Two intricate black symbols were visible on his upper arms, looking a lot like tribal tattoos.

His hands had grown to the size of watermelons; each one now seemed more than capable of crushing a human head. Both his finger- and toenails had been replaced by fearsome claws.

Ichigo involuntarily took a step back as the image before him brought back some memories he had been trying very hard to forget over the past few weeks. Most notably the ones of a mutilated Ulquiorra fading into dust, as well as Ichigo's own black daito sticking out of Uryuu's stomach. Both had been the result of him not being able to control his inner Hollow. The man standing before him, on the other hand...

**"Much better****,"** The rogue Shinigami spoke, cracking his neck. It appeared that all of his injuries had been healed during the transformation. While his Zanpakutou had disappeared, the clouds high above them had not. If anything, the sky seemed even more menacing now. From what Ichigo had observed so far, it seemed that Takahashi was able to make lightning strike wherever he wanted it to with just his thoughts. That meant that any one of them could be attacked at any moment. Kurotsuchi had somehow found a way to direct the lightning away from his body, but unfortunately he was in no shape to aid them right now. All Ichigo could do at the moment was stay alert for any sign of danger.

**"So Yama-jii,"** Takahashi casually spoke.** "Ready to get your flabby old ass handed to you?" **There was no way to be sure, but somehow Ichigo just knew the bastard was grinning savagely at Yamamoto from behind his mask.

Yamamoto merely huffed in annoyance, not seeming very impressed with his opponent's new appearance. "Even in that form, you were unable to defeat me 112 years ago. What makes you think you stand a chance now, youngster?"

**"Have**** you finally gone senile, old-timer? I'm in control this time,"** he gleefully spoke. **"It won't be like then, when I was just a rabid animal going on a rampage. No. This time, you're going down," **Takahashi sneered at Yamamoto, his entire body emitting a purple aura. Electricity crackled around his form intimidatingly. Ichigo didn't even know how the hell you were supposed to fight something like this. You couldn't even get in close without getting zapped. Takahashi had become a monster. The stuff of nightmares. And coming from Ichigo, that was saying a lot.

Yamamoto's facial expression was unreadable. "What is this nonsense? Are you saying you were not aware of your actions the last time we fought?"

**"Finally figured it out?"** He spat. **"What, did you actually believe I did all of that because I _enjoyed_ it?"** Whatever Takahashi was talking about, it seemed to be a sensitive matter to him. If the Reiatsu he was emitting was of any indication, he had gotten even angrier. However, Ichigo also felt something else. Another emotion, suppressed by all the anger and hate. Sadness, pain and... guilt, maybe?  
>More lightning came down from the sky. The captains all fidgeted nervously, but it didn't seem to be aimed at any of them. It just hit random areas and set some more buildings on fire.<p>

The young man took a deep breath to calm himself. The random lightning strikes stopped. **"It seems a lot has happened during my imprisonment,"** Takahashi said, changing the subject. **"I've been wondering for a while now: what could have possibly forced you of all people to use Itto Kaso?" **  
>Ichigo glanced at Yamamoto. During the Battle in Fake Karakura Town, the old man had sacrificed one of his arms to give Ichigo an opening against Aizen. Itto Kaso was an extremely high-level spell that used the caster's own body as a catalyst in order to create an enormous pillar of fire. Unfortunately, it hadn't been enough to kill Aizen. Takahashi had been able to tell right away that Yamamoto had used that spell just by seeing his missing arm. There were many possible ways in which Yamamoto could have lost an arm, but he had immediately known it was because of that specific Kido. Combined with the fact that he had used some very high-level spells without incantation earlier gave Ichigo plenty of reasons to believe Takahashi was especially well-versed in Kido. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen him attempt to attack anybody at close range. He had always used either Kido or his Shikai's abilities. But now that he had transformed? Who knew what abilities this new form had given him.<p>

The ex-captain waited for Yamamoto's reply, but it quickly became clear he wasn't going to get one. **"Alright then. Enough talking," **He solemnly stated. He fell into a combat stance, radiating power. All traces of emotion were gone. The only thing Ichigo could still sense from his Reiatsu was pure killing intent. **"Let's end this." **The beast snapped it's fingers, the simple gesture causing a continuous stream of lightning to rain down on the old man. Just like that, the battle had begun anew, with Takahashi already having the advantage. The assault continued for a while, but none of the onlookers were able to do anything. Yamamoto's wall of fire was still there. Even if they tried jumping in from above, Ryuujin-jakka's flames would find them and force back anyone who tried to interfere in the battle.

Yamamoto was able to disrupt the flow of lightning and stop the attack by flaring his immense Reiatsu. Soi Fon, who had tried to watch the fight despite her injuries, succumbed to its power and fainted, but was caught in the middle of her fall by Yoruichi.

Komamura appeared next to Ichigo, probably worried by the increase in power of the Soutaicho. He was panting heavily, but seemed to be able to endure the massive power surge in spite of his injury. The teen glanced at the tall captain, noticing he was wrapped in thick bandages from the waistline up to his pectorals. Unohana was definitely worthy of the title of Soul Society's best medic; healing a wound like that under these circumstances and in so little time was impressive, to say the least. Ichigo could sense her moving around somewhere on ground-level. She was probably preoccupied with Kurotsuchi at the moment.

"Genryuusai-dono..." Komamura seemed to be ashamed of letting Takahashi win so easily. He probably thought it was because he hadn't been strong enough that Yamamoto was forced to step in now.

"Don't beat yourself up, big guy. I don't think any of us could handle him alone," Ichigo tried to console him, patting him on his lower back. He would've gone for the shoulder, but it was a little too high up for him to reach. Komamura looked down at Ichigo, smiling wryly.

Meanwhile, the slightly singed Yamamoto Shunpoed away at a speed Yoruichi would be proud of, reappearing behind the transformed Vizard. "Hado number 33: Sokatsui." A huge blast of blue fire engulfed the man. The spell briefly mixed with Ryuujin-jakka's flames, creating a flare of vivid purple. The blue flames quickly dissipated, only to show that they had had nearly no effect whatsoever. The few mild burns that coated Takahashi's body started to heal right away, making him chuckle darkly at Yamamoto. **"So you really have gone senile. I've been fighting primarily with Kido pretty much since the moment I got my Soul Reaper powers. Do you honestly think you can win using the form of combat that I specialized in? And by the way, a level thirty spell? I'm offended, Yama-jii. My turn now." **He lifted his left hand, showing his open palm to his opponent. Dark-purple energy gathered in it to from a sphere. **"Cero."**

It was a good thing they had decided to watch from the air: the beam went straight through Yamamoto's infernal cage, destroying what was left of the First Division barracks in an enormous fiery explosion. Ichigo silently prayed no-one had been in there anymore. Although, if there were still people there, they would have already been suffocated by the insane Reiatsu by now.

"Do not worry," Komamura spoke upon seeing Ichigo look at the burning wreckage. "A Hell Butterfly informed me that Lieutenant Sasakibe evacuated everyone here to the fourth division as soon as this man appeared. The other lieutenants have returned to their own Divisions to inform the troops about what is happening."

Takahashi clicked his tongue as he noticed Yamamoto wasn't there anymore. **"Damn. I missed." **An enormous fireball suddenly blindsided him, completely taking Takahashi by surprise. He fired a quick Bala to try and deflect it, but wasn't entirely successful: he was forced to use his left arm to block the attack, with the result that the limb was partly incinerated. The arm had been stripped of flesh and revealed pure white bone where the fireball had made direct contact: the skin had melted off due to the intense heat.

Earlier on, when Takahashi had been hit by Yamamoto's Sokatsui he had already demonstrated that his Resurreccion granted him some form of regeneration. This time however, the wound was simply far too serious. "**Fuck, that hurt!" **White, bubbling liquid started trailing down the wounded arm. His body was trying to repair itself, but with such horrific burns Ichigo doubted it would be enough. There wasn't much blood, as all the major arteries had seared shut.

The Head Captain emerged from the wall of flame, Ryuujin-Jakka clenched tightly in his right hand. **"You're really starting to piss me off, Yama-jii! DIE!" **Katsumi made a fist with his good hand, which started crackling with electricity. He fired another giant bolt of lightning at Yamamoto, directly from his palm this time. The Head Captain attempted to dodge the powerful attack, but wasn't fast enough. Many shocked gasps were let out as the force of the attack propelled him backward, through his own wall of flames. He let out a barely audible, pained grunt as he smacked into a piece of wall that was still standing upright before sliding to the ground.

Unohana rushed off in his direction together with Komamura and Kyoraku, completely forgetting about Kurotsuchi. The cage of fire weakened for just an instant, which Ichigo, Kenpachi and Toshiro took as an opportunity to jump in and continue the fight while the Captain-Commander was temporarily incapacitated. Obviously the Head Captain was far too powerful to be downed by a single attack, but they couldn't risk giving Takahashi the opening he needed to finish the job.

The three men didn't bother holding back: Kenpachi ripped off his eye-patch, Toshiro activated his Bankai, and Ichigo called forth his own Hollow mask. Unfortunately Hitsugaya was at a major disadvantage here. There was barely any moisture left in the air, and the intense heat wasn't exactly helping. As a result, he was only able to partially form his wings and cover his sword-bearing arm in ice. Considering his entire Bankai consisted of ice, it was a minor miracle in itself that he had even succeeded in activating it.

Takahashi wasn't really paying Toshiro any mind though. **"What?! You're a hybrid too?"** He recoiled, seeming to be too shocked to fight back. Toshiro took the opportunity to restrain him with Sajo Sabaku, reasoning he should stick to Kido while his Bankai was still forming. Massive golden chains briefly wrapped around their target and held him in place, but the electricity coating Takahashi's body disintegrated them in mere seconds. Which had been more than long enough for Kenpachi. The man gleefully attacked his target head-on. Takahashi hadn't been able to evade thanks to Toshiro's spell and he no longer had a weapon to block with. As a result, all he could do to defend against Kenpachi's attack was use his good hand to catch the sword. It was obvious Takahashi had been counting on his lightning armor to quickly take Kenpachi down. Unfortunately for him, he didn't know that applying logic in a battle against Kenpachi wasn't going to be of any use. Kenpachi's own monstrous Reiatsu protected him sufficiently so that when he cut into his adversary's hand, he was barely bothered by the electricity despite his own sword acting as a conductor.

Ichigo meanwhile, chose to approach from behind. While he was by no means a strategic fighter, he was nowhere near as reckless as Kenpachi. Instead of attacking directly, he was preparing to fire a Hollow-powered, fully charged Getsuga Tenshou from a distance. It was a good plan, but unfortunately Takahashi chose that moment to snap out of whatever stupor he had been in. He roared with fury and grabbed hold of Kenpachi's blade, collecting power in his other hand, which had just regained some functionality.

No matter how tough Kenpachi may have been, a lightning bolt to the face was something not even he could just shrug off. Like Yamamoto, he was launched straight through the barrier of flames and out of the infernal cage, leaving Ichigo and Toshiro to face Takahashi by themselves.

"**Aaaargh!"** Roaring at the top of his lungs,the Substitute Shinigami struck at the beast before him with a Getsuga Tenshou coating his blade. Again, Takahashi caught the weapon with his bare hands. It left deep cuts, even taking a chunk out of the bone of his most damaged hand, but he didn't seem to care. Frankly, after all the attacks his hands had endured, there wasn't much left of them. A steady stream of the white liquid was flowing out of the wounds like blood, some of it dripping onto the ground. Ichigo noticed that despite being in direct contact with his enemy, the electricity hadn't affected him. He glanced at his weapon. The entire length of the blade was still covered by black Reiatsu, even though Ichigo had stopped consciously channeling his Reiryoku into it. The Reiatsu appeared to be preventing the rogue captain's lightning armor from hurting him. Even now, was Zangetsu still protecting him?

**"Why do they accept you?"** Takahashi asked with a small voice. The purple glow in his eyes faded. For just a moment, Ichigo could see the man behind the beast. "**You have Hollow Powers too, don't you? Same as** **me!" **He could see the confusion and pain in the young man's stormy grey eyes. **"So why?" **Takahashi's Reiatsu intensified dramatically. **"WHY DID THEY SENTENCE _ME _TO DEATH?!"**

Takahashi suddenly took one hand off Ichigo's blade and wrapped it tightly around the teen's throat instead. Taking advantage of Ichigo's momentary panic, Takahashi ripped Tensa Zangetsu out of his hands and threw the black Daito into the flames surrounding them. **"ANSWER ME!" **he roared, his eyes glowing bright purple once again.  
>But Ichigo couldn't answer, not while Takahashi's hand was clamped around his throat so tightly he couldn't even breathe. He could feel Takahashi's power surging through his own body, but it appeared he wasn't intent on hurting Ichigo. Not yet, at least. The teen dug his fingernails into the flesh of his attacker's arm in a last act of defiance, but knew it was useless. Ichigo couldn't do anything but stare back into those intense purple orbs.<p>

Hope briefly filled him as Toshiro's Reiatsu flared somewhere nearby. "Let him go!" the young captain yelled. He came flying toward them at full speed, his Bankai finally having formed completely. Takahashi turned around and quickly fired a Bala at him, making Ichigo struggle against his grip even more. Toshiro used one of his wings to block the attack, and the bullet of red energy harmlessly impacted against it. He raised his sword, ready to strike at Takahashi- but was he was struck down first by an insane lightning bolt so large it defied the very laws of nature. Hitsugaya's expression was one of complete shock when the attack hit him. The ice coating his body was evaporated nearly instantaneously. As the light faded, Hitsugaya's body went completely limp.

Despite the lack of oxygen, Ichigo still attempted to yell out when he saw Toshiro fall. The young captain plummeted to the ground, landing just a few meters away from Ichigo. He wasn't moving, but Ichigo could sense he was still alive, at least. Ichigo was furious at himself. How could he be so useless at such a critical time? His sword was somewhere within an inferno hotter than Hell itself, and even had he been able to move, he wasn't about to go get it.  
>This was his worst nightmare come true. So many of his friends were in danger, and there was nothing he could do.<p>

**"Fool,"** Takahashi softly spoke as he regarded the fallen Hitsugaya. **"After all that effort you put into activating your Bankai, it only served to make you a bigger target**."  
>He turned to face Ichigo again. <strong>"Now then. Where were we?"<strong> Takahashi growled threateningly. At this point, color was starting to drain from Ichigo's vision due to the lack of oxygen. He could hear a high-pitched whistling that was rapidly blocking out all other sounds. If he didn't get some air into his lungs soon, he was going to pass out. He stopped clawing at Takahashi's arm. His limbs weren't responding to his commands anymore.

"Let... let him go. Please." Toshiro's voice sounded distorted to Ichigo, like he was hearing it from underwater. "He's not part of the Gotei 13. He doesn't... he doesn't have anything to with this." Just as Ichigo's eyes rolled back into his head and his vision went completely white, the pressure on his throat lessened.

He gratefully sucked in fresh air, wheezing as he did so. The annoying, high-pitched sound became less prominent as Ichigo's hearing came back to him. With every gulp of air, more and more detail returned to his vision. At first, he could only make out vague figures and shapes in tints of grey, but everything quickly became sharper. Color was a bit slower to return, but he was getting there.

**"What do you mean, not part of the Gotei? He's a Shinigami isn't he?" **The transformed Vizard looked at Ichigo. **"A pretty damn strong one, at that. Definitely mid- to high Captain level."**

"He's a human", Toshiro whimpered from the ground. He barely had enough strength to raise his head. "His Reiatsu is already unstable; he'll lose his powers soon. He's no threat to you..." Hitsugaya tried to reason with him.  
><strong>"A human?" <strong>It was obvious Takahashi was hiding a look of surprise behind that mask. **"Well, that would certainly explain a lot..." **he began. He paused to think for a moment. **"Very well. I'll take you up on that, young Captain. Only..."  
><strong>A sense of foreboding grabbed hold of both Ichigo and Toshiro when Takahashi turned back to look at the redhead. **"I don't think I'm going to wait for his power to dissipate naturally."**

Ichigo could feel the electricity coursing through his body becoming more... violent, for lack of a better word. Up until now all he had felt was a strange tingling sensation, but it was rapidly becoming painful. **"Unstable Reiatsu or not, you're still a human. You'll be a wild card if I were to let you go like this." **Ichigo renewed his struggling. His situation still hadn't changed of course, so no matter how hard tried to resist, he knew it would be useless. That wasn't going to stop him from trying, though.

"No! Stop!" Toshiro screamed, but his words fell on deaf ears. The pain increased as arcs of electricity began traveling between Ichigo and his aggressor's bodies. The taller man looked him straight in the eye. The purple glow had diminished once again, revealing the grey of his irises. **"Sorry about this,"** Takahashi spoke softly, almost regretfully.

Then, there was only pain.

Pain was all his mind could register. Intense, mind-numbing pain that felt like every single nerve ending in his body was on fire. Takahashi was sending thousands of volts of electricity through his body, and he couldn't do anything to resist. If this went on for much longer, Ichigo feared he wouldn't be able to hang on to his sanity.  
>After what felt like an eternity of torture, something deep inside of Ichigo, at the very core of his being, finally snapped. The pain lessened. He became vaguely aware of screaming. His own screaming. Funny, he didn't remember doing that.<p>

He was unceremoniously thrown to the floor, next to Toshiro. His Shinigami uniform was rapidly turning stark white. Through sheer force of will, he urged himself to stop screaming despite the painful spasms wracking his entire body. He clenched his teeth as hard as he could, but some muffled sobs still managed to get through. His face was getting wet; he was crying.

"Kurosaki! Kurosaki!" He could see Toshiro hovering above him, looking extremely worried. "Ichigo!" Hitsugaya held his arms down to stop them from flailing around. Ichigo still hadn't regained full control of his motor functions.

**"Now then... Where is he?" **Takahashi muttered to himself. He was looking around the cage of fire, but didn't notice the curtain of flames briefly parting behind him. Hearing someone roar furiously behind him, Takahashi quickly turned in the direction of the sound. His reaction time was actually pretty damn good, but no-one could out-speed the Goddess of Flash. Yoruichi's kick hit him hard in the side of his head and sent him flying. Not wasting any time, Yoruichi Shunpoed over to Ichigo and Toshiro, picked them both up, and exited the combat area through a new opening in the wall of flame.

Yamamoto watched them as they came out of his fiery cage, looking a bit worse for wear himself. Like Komamura, he too was wrapped in bandages. Unohana seemed to have already gone back to Kurotsuchi's side to continue treating him. "How are they?" the Captain Commander asked Yoruichi.  
>"Alive," was all she said in response.<p>

Yamamoto nodded, understanding the severity of their injuries. "Prepare yourselves," he ordered the captains with authority lacing his voice. Everyone that could still fight dropped into a battle-ready stance at his words. Yamamoto raised his hand, before gently lowering it. At his command, the flames receded. The roaring fire was extinguished, leaving an eerie silence in its wake.

Takahashi had just managed to get back to his feet. He looked contemptuously at Yamamoto and Yoruichi, locking his dislocated jaw back into place. His mask was visibly cracked where Yoruichi had landed a hit on him. For just a moment, nobody dared to make a move. Saying the atmosphere was heavy was probably the understatement of the millennium. Byakuya's calm voice cut through the silence. "Bakudo number 75: Gochutekkan." Five linked steel pillars fell from the sky and landed around Takahashi, locking him in.

"**No incantation? Impressive, Byakuya-kun."** He spoke, turning to look at the raven-haired Captain. Byakuya was supporting a heavily dazed Kenpachi, but somehow managed to look as dignified as he always did, even with that behemoth of a man hanging over his shoulder. Instantly, bright purple lightning came down from the sky, obliterating the five pillars. However, a level seventy spell seemed to be able to hold him longer than the others had, and also took a lot more effort on Takahashi's part to free himself from. The lightning he had called down then gathered in his hand, which he fired at Yamamoto in a rather small, but incredibly potent lightning bolt. Or so he thought.

"Sogyo no Kotowari." Ukitake appeared in front of his teacher, using his Shikai's ability to absorb the blast.

**"Crap!"** Was all Takahashi managed to get out in response. He saw his own attack being redirected at him, and just like Yamamoto, he was unable to evade in time. He was flung away a good fifty meters before roughly coming in contact with the ground. The ex-captain slid to a stop and struggled to regain his footing. However, Yoruichi wasn't about to give him a chance to so. Fueled by her anger for what he had done to Ichigo, she dashed toward her target at a speed no ordinary person could ever even hope to match. With her Shunko not only strengthening her attacks, but also protecting her from Takahashi's lightning armor she whaled on her target mercilessly. Her punches and kicks were so fast even the captains couldn't follow them all. With a bestial roar, she slammed Takahashi's body into the ground with one final, unbelievably destructive punch. The ground around the two combatants was destroyed, pieces of debris flying everywhere. Yoruichi wisely chose to use that cloud of dust to escape. She had taken her revenge, she wasn't going to risk getting herself killed by staying near Takahashi for any longer than she needed to.

The onlookers searched for any sign of an incoming counterattack, but nothing happened. Not one to take any chances, Captain Kyoraku moved in. "Bushogoma!" The whirlwind created by his Zanpakuto blew away the obscuring cloud. It was a good thing Captain Kyoraku had reacted so fast. Takahashi's Resurrección was failing. His mask was quickly crumbling, as was his Hierro. Pieces broke off from the mass of tentacles and revealed the brown hair underneath. The pieces shattered as they fell to the ground, quickly disappearing into wisps of black smoke.

What was worrying them however, was the Garganta Takahashi had formed while he was hidden from view. "No!" Many voices cried out as one, but it was too late. Yoruichi, by far the fastest among them, only managed to rip out some of his hair just before the Garganta closed. He was gone. No grand speech where he swore to return and get his revenge. No flashy technique to distract them while he made his escape. He just took the first opportunity he got and hightailed it out of there.

The captains finally lowered their Reiatsu back to manageable levels as they realized the fight was over. Even though none of the captains had been killed or permanently incapacitated - not even Kurotsuchi - this was undeniably the Gotei's loss. Ichigo's vision started to blur when the adrenaline finally wore off. He was pretty sure Yoruichi and Ukitake had gently picked him and Toshiro up and carried them away, but he couldn't make out what the white-haired captain was saying to them. From that point on, everything was blank in his mind.

**XXX**

Ichigo felt nauseous. His body ached all over, like he had gotten hit by a freight train. One that was on fire. It even hurt just to breathe.  
>When he wondered what could have caused him to end up in such a condition, everything that had happened came rushing back all at once. The influx of memories made him groan out loud. His head pounded. At least now he knew why everything hurt.<p>

He experimentally opened his eyes. For a second, he thought something was wrong with them. He blinked, hoping his vision would go back to normal by doing so. Then he remembered how Orihime's Soten Kisshun always cast an orange glow on everything you saw while inside of the bubble. He could hear people talking not too far away. Glancing to his left, Ichigo noticed Grimmjow lying only a few feet away from him on his own futon. It seemed he was back at Urahara's. With tremendous effort, he turned his head the other way to see Orihime. She had her eyes closed, and looked like she was concentrating. "Orihime..." he rasped out. The sound of his own voice surprised him.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Lots of movement could be heard following Orihime's cry. The paper door was hastily slid open. Within seconds, all his human friends as well as Urahara and Yoruichi were gathered around him.

"How are you feeling, Kurosaki-san?" The shopkeeper inquired with a worried expression.

"Like crap. What did'ja expect?" he managed to croak out hoarsely. "Can I get some water?"

Chad quickly came closer and helped his friend sit upright before holding a glass of cold water to his lips. Ichigo thankfully gulped down every last drop of the liquid.

Urahara took off his hat, looking regretfully at Ichigo. "I'm deeply sorry, Kurosaki-san. This is all my fault. I found Takahashi in Hueco Mundo. I immediately fled once I realized who he was. He must have known I would warn the Gotei 13 about him, so he took off to Soul Society right away, while he still had the element of surprise." He lowered his gaze. "I should have known better. If I had sent a message and kept him busy for a while-"

"Urahara. Stop," Ichigo said, his voice already a lot firmer now that he had rehydrated. "Don't try to take the blame for this. It's not like you." Remembering the reason Urahara had gone to Hueco Mundo in the first place, it wasn't hard for Ichigo to put two and two together. "So, does that mean he's the one who attacked Grimmjow?"

"Most likely, yes," the man affirmed. "He was probably training in Hueco Mundo to gain control over his Resurrección. There were traces of his Reiatsu everywhere, which is how I was able to track him down so easily. Jaegerjaquez-san most likely just happened to cross paths with him."

Ichigo absently nodded. "How long have I been out?"

"About six hours. It's six thirty in the morning right now. We could only transfer you back here about twenty minutes ago. The Senkaimon got hit by lightning pretty badly", Urahara explained when he saw the question forming on the teen's lips. "It is one of the highest points in Soul Society, after all. It took the Kido Corps a lot of effort to fix it. Lieutenant Isane kept you stable until Inoue-san was able to heal you."

"I see." He took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Urahara... What about my Shinigami powers?" There it was. The inevitable question they had all been dreading. Everyone but Urahara looked away. His friends' solemn silence confirmed his suspicions. Urahara bit his lip, clearly uncomfortable that he would have to be the one to break it to him. "He did too much damage to your Spiritual body. Orihime can heal the wounds, but your powers won't come back. You still have some Reiryoku left so you'll still be able to see spirits, but... I'm afraid that too will be gone by the end of the week." Urahara finished sadly. It was quiet for a few seconds.

"Well, I knew it was gonna happen eventually," Ichigo started. He gestured to his best friend that he was alright now, so Chad let go of his shoulder and sat back down on the floor. Upon seeing everyone act so depressed, Ichigo tried to lift the mood by smiling, although the smile didn't quite manage to reach his eyes. "It's alright guys, I was prepared for this. I'm just happy I got as much time as I did."

He didn't convince any of them, of course, but they decided to go along with it for now. After all, the teen deserved a break after what he had gone through.

"There. All done, Kurosaki-kun." The the orange bubble around him disappeared as Orihime recalled her fairies.

"Thanks, Orihime."

Seeing how the room threatened to fall into an awkward silence again, Urahara distracted everyone by quickly changing the topic. "He used be the captain of Squad Three." Upon receiving confused looks, Urahara elaborated on his previous statement. "Takahashi. He was captain for 13 years until the central 46 ordered him to be executed... on account of obtaining Hollow powers. From what I know, it appears he was a naturally-occurring Vizard, like Kurosaki-san. He hid it pretty well all that time."

"Naturally-occurring Vizard?" Ishida asked incredulously. "Does that mean-?"

Urahara sighed deeply, showing just how tired he really was at the moment. Knowing him, he had probably spent what was left of the night preparing a counteroffensive against their newest enemy. "Yes. It's most likely that he gained his powers while he was still alive. I'm not sure how, but it's the only reasonable explanation I can offer at this time."

"Is that why he's so strong?" Ichigo asked. "Because he was a hybrid, like me?"

"Yes. Which explains why it's forbidden for a Shinigami to transfer their powers to a human; they can gain immense power in a very short amount of time. I mean, just look at yourself, Kurosaki-san: less than a month after awakening your powers, you were able to go toe-to-toe with some of Soul Society's strongest captains and win. A normal Shinigami would have to train for hundreds of years to reach that level."

"Urahara," Ishida interrupted. "You said the Central 46 ordered the Gotei to execute him. So why is he still alive?"

"I'm still trying to piece the story together, Ishida-kun. Ukitake-taicho said he would contact me sometime today, after things settle down in the Seireitei. I'll let all of you know what I find out."

The conversation was interrupted by Rukia appearing in the doorway, looking like an absolute wreck. Her hair stuck out at awkward angles, she had very noticeable bags under her eyes and even her shiny new Lieutenant's badge wasn't attached properly to her upper arm. Urahara clearly wasn't the only one who hadn't gotten any sleep tonight.

"Kuchiki-san, are you-"

"I'm fine, Orihime." The way she snapped at her friend like that made it quite clear that she was anything BUT fine. The orange-haired girl looked down at the floor, not having expected the reaction. Rukia's features turned slightly apologetic, but she was too stressed out to really care at the moment. "How about you, Ichigo?"

"Still alive, if that's what you mean." Her tired eyes roamed over his figure. She obviously noticed the now-white Shihakusho and the absence of Zangetsu, but didn't comment on it.

"How are things on your side?"

Rukia slumped to the floor pathetically, looking like she could pass out at any moment. "Soul Society is in absolute chaos. The Head Captain is back on his feet despite Unohana-taichou's protests, but it won't be long before he collapses if he goes on like this. Kurotsuchi was a bloody smear on the ground by the time Squad 4 got to him, he'll be in intensive care for the next few weeks-" None of them so much as raised their eyebrows when they heard about Kurotsuchi's condition. Ishida didn't even attempt to hide his complacency and was smiling rather smugly.

"-Which leaves squad 12 without a captain," Rukia continued, pointedly ignoring Ishida. "Ukitake-taichou was asked to take over command of their division in the meantime, and that means me and the third seats have even more work to deal with." She cupped her face in her hands, looking more tired than Ichigo had ever seen her. "Squad 4 has it worst of all, though. They're being overrun by injured people. Apparently some idiots panicked and started fighting among themselves during the attack. Not only that, but Hollows took advantage of the shield being weakened by the lightning storm and broke into the Seireitei. That definitely added to the list of injured people. Unohana-taicho even had to ask for extra healers from other divisions. Captain Komamura should also be in bed with a wound like that, but he insisted on staying with his division. He didn't want to leave them alone while things are this hectic."

She took a deep breath before continuing her rant. "As for Squad one's barracks; they're completely gone. The Second Division acts as Soul society's base of operations for now. It's going to take weeks, if not months to fix everything that was destroyed by that damn lightning." It was only then that her gaze finally landed on the Espada. "What the hell? !" She quickly jumped to her feet and attempted to draw her Zanpakutou, but was stopped by Yoruichi. She had materialized behind her with a quick Flash Step. "Chill. We got him restrained and he's still unconscious. Not that big a threat in my opinion."

"What is he doing here? I thought he was dead!" She accusingly pointed a finger at Ichigo. "You said he was dead!"

He held up his hands defensively. "No I didn't! I said that I _thought _he was dead, I left him there after Orihime got kidnapped by that other Espada!" He felt a bit ashamed after admitting he had left a dying man behind like that. "Besides, the whole reason I even came to Soul Society was to talk to you about all this! I didn't exactly get the chance to do so, especially when that _thing _showed up," he bit out.  
>Ichigo threw off his sheets and got up, padding towards his body that was propped up in a corner. "What are you doing, Kurosaki?" Ishida asked while he reclaimed it.<p>

"Going out for a walk. I need some fresh air."

"Do you want us to join you?" Orihime asked with a small voice.

"Do whatever you want." He accepted a spare coat from Urahara and buttoned it up as he walked towards the door. He noticed his friends were all following him, being the faithful companions they were. Chad, his oldest and most loyal friend... Orihime, the _eccentric_, easily excitable girl he'd come to think of as a sister... Rukia, the crazy ghost-girl who had spent half a year living in his bedroom closet... Even Ishida, the stuck-up prick. The guy was the textbook fucking definition of a Tsundere.

Thinking about it like that, Ichigo realized that aside from maybe Chad, every single one of his friends was a complete nutcase.

Ichigo loved them all to death.

Once outside, they just stalked off in a random direction, quietly conversing among themselves. Ichigo just nodded or grunted in acknowledgment when they said something to him, not feeling very talkative at the moment.

After a good ten minutes of walking aimlessly, Ichigo noticed that his feet had carried him toward the playground in the park. His parents, especially his mom, had brought him there every so often to play when he was a kid. Feeling nostalgic, Ichigo took a seat on one of the swings and gently rocked himself back and forth. Orihime took the one next to him, copying his movements.

"Ichigo", Rukia started after a few uneventful minutes, "I should get back to Soul Society. Ukitake-taicho said I could take the rest of the morning off, but I know he's just being nice. We're terribly understaffed as it is."

"Alright... Hey Rukia, wait a second!", he called after her when she started to leave. "Don't let Soul Society know about Grimmjow yet, alright? I mean, we're not sure what to do with him yet, but if Central 46 finds out about him..." he trailed off, knowing she would understand. Soul Society's government wasn't exactly pro-Arrancar. They'd probably torture him for information. After that, he would likely be given to Kurotsuchi for research purposes -which could also be seen as torture. And finally, when he was of no use to them anymore, they would probably have him tortured just for the fun of it before eventually putting him out of his misery. No, letting the Seireitei know about Grimmjow was not a good idea.

She nodded, albeit hesitantly and stalked off toward the edge of the playground before using her Zanpakutou to open a portal. She gave everyone a weak smile and a wave as the gateway shut, and then she was gone.

After her departure, Chad and Ishida said their goodbyes as well. It was only just past six in the morning after all, and there wasn't anything for them to do at the moment. It was better to keep their energy up for when they would be needed. Orihime decided to stay with him however, even though they didn't say a single word to each other for a very long time. She just patiently sat there as he mulled over his thoughts, silently showing her support.

After a while Ichigo looked up at her, smiling a bit awkwardly. "Thanks for... you know. Staying."

She smiled back at him. _That's what friends are for._

She didn't need to say it out loud. They knew each other well enough for that. Ichigo loved her and cared deeply for her, but not in a romantic way. He had already discovered that long ago. He wasn't sure how Orihime felt about him - he was admittedly rather thick-headed about those things - but he just couldn't picture himself in a relationship with her. To Ichigo, it would be like dating one of his sisters.  
>Although, that wasn't <em>quite <em>right either. It was an overprotective, 'older-brother' kind of love he had for his sisters. Orihime was, well... Orihime. They had both been outcasts. They had both been bullied because of their hair color. They had both lost someone very dear to them. And they both cared deeply for their friends. They were very similar in many ways, and Ichigo felt like he could tell her anything. Although he rarely did so, he was far too stubborn and proud for that. She usually had to drag it out of him when she noticed something was wrong.

They both gasped in surprise as Ichigo's ring tone snapped them out of their reveries. The teen pulled the device out of his pants pocket and held it to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Kurosaki-san!" Urahara's voice blared from the speaker.

"Urahara? How'd you get my number?" Loud background noise could be heard on the shopkeeper's end, making Ichigo wonder just what the hell was going on back at the store.

"Could you get back to the shop, please? Your presence would be greatly appreciated." Something crashed to the floor and shattered into a billion pieces by the sound of it. A gruff, male voice was heard arguing loudly with Tessai over something.

"Uh, sure, but what-"

"See you soon, then!" A man screamed just as Urahara was about to hang up. "Oh no... Tessai, quick, bind him!"

"Bakudo number sixty-one, Rokujo- AAH!"

"Don't even think about it, you motherfu-" Three short beeps followed as the line was cut off.

Ichigo and Orihime looked at each other. They knew who that voice belonged to. Not wasting another second, they jumped off of the swings and sprinted towards Urahara Shoten. Good thing the park wasn't very far away from the shop. Many passersby turned their heads at the two teenagers as they ran by them with incredible speed.

They busted through the front door of the shop, not bothering to close it behind them and headed straight towards the room where all the noise was coming from. They slid open the paper door... to reveal one of the weirdest scenes they had ever laid eyes on.  
>Yoruichi was shamelessly sprawled out on the floor, wearing only a pair of old, blue jeans and a black bra that left very little to the imagination. She was laughing very loudly at Urahara, who pouted at Ichigo upon his arrival. In his hands, he held the charred remains of his favorite white-and-green-striped hat. The room was completely wrecked: pieces of glass and furniture were everywhere, tatami mats were ripped from the floor and a large, still smoking burn mark could be spotted on one of the walls.<p>

That wasn't what drew Ichigo's attention, however. In the center of the devastation, a mildly injured Tessai was bent over another man, pinning him to the ground.

"Get off of me, you freak!" Sky-blue hair spilled out on the floor around the man's head as he attempted to push Tessai away. The handcuffs he was still wearing made it virtually impossible for him to do so, so he decided to knee Tessai in a rather sensitive area instead. The poor man fell to the floor clutching the abused body parts for the second time in less than twenty-four hours. The blue-haired man got to his feet and noticed the two bystanders gawking at him. "Oi, Kurosaki! What the hell is going on here?!"

Well, guess who decided to wake up while they were gone?


	5. Cat and Mouse

**Chapter 5: Cat and Mouse**

"G-Grimmjow?" Ichigo couldn't believe what he was seeing. Neither could Orihime, if the look on her face was anything to go by. It was impressive, to say the least: being able to cause this much damage even when you had your powers sealed and your wrists bound together.

"No shit. Don't just stand there, Kurosaki, get these things off of me!" he ordered, gesturing to the heavy, metal handcuffs around his wrists. Well, that's one way to show gratitude.  
>Doing his best to stay calm despite the absurdity of the situation, Ichigo tried to explain to Grimmjow that he couldn't just take off his restraints. "Look, I'm sorry Grimmjow, but we can't just let you go. You're in the living world, you could do a lot of damage here and-"<p>

"ILike I care about the living world!" Grimmjow interrupted him. He stomped over to Ichigo and leaned forward so they were face-to-face, using his advantage in height to try and intimidate the teen. "This shithole can rot for all I care. Take these things off right now, Kurosaki. I'm not staying in dump for another _second_," he hissed.

After going through the trouble of saving that blue-haired bastard's life, this is the thanks he got? Well, Grimmjow had another thing coming. "Like hell I will!" Ichigo snapped with his teeth bared, getting so close to Grimmjow their noses almost touched. "After all the shit you put us through during the war, you suddenly show up at my doorstep in the middle of the night, bleeding all over the place. So what did I do? I did everything I could to save your stupid ass- you're welcome, by the way- and now you expect me to just take those things off so you can be on your way without even bothering to explain to us what the hell happened to you?!" He took some deep breaths while everyone in the room stared at him in shocked silence. "Well go fuck yourself, Grimmjow!" The tense silence lingered. Ichigo himself wasn't even sure why he was getting so worked up over this.

After the initial shock of Ichigo's sudden outburst passed, a look of pure rage manifested on Grimmjow's features. No-one talked to him like that. Grimmjow's nostrils flared, he bared his teeth and narrowed his eyes as he moved to smack some respect into the lowly human that had disrespected him- but found himself unable to do so.

That lowly human had saved his life. Not just once, but twice now. Even he knew it wasn't very honorable to assault someone you owed your life to. And if there was anything Grimmjow hated, it was being indebted to someone else. Of course, the fact that he was surrounded by five rather powerful individuals while his own abilities were sealed may have also had something to do with his unusual self-restraint. Possibly.

"Fine," he eventually spat bitterly at the teen. He stomped back over to his futon, refusing to meet anyone's gaze, and flopped down on his back. He put his hands in his neck and crossed his long legs as he made himself comfortable. "What do you wanna know?"

Urahara and Yoruichi glanced at each other, clearly impressed that Ichigo had managed to not only calm him down, but also make him willing to answer their questions simply by yelling at him. They had been sure it would have taken a lot more 'persuading' to get him to talk. "Well, ah, why don't you start at the beginning, Jaegerjaquez-san," the shopkeeper piped up when Ichigo didn't say anything. "What was it that attacked you?"

"Not sure. Thought it was a Vasto Lorde at first, but that thing was way too powerful to be a normal Hollow." He stubbornly continued to stare at the ceiling while he talked. "Something was off about it's Reiatsu too. The only time I ever felt something that compared to it was when Kurosaki," he gestured with his foot towards Ichigo, "was fighting Ulquiorra."

"I see," Urahara replied while scratching the stubble on his chin. "Well, that pretty much confirms what we already knew. Now, if you don't mind me asking, Jaegarjaquez-san, why did you go to Kurosaki-san when you were wounded? He is a Soul Reaper after all. He could have just as easily finished you off right then and there."

"I'd never attack someone who couldn't defend himself. Especially if they came to me for help," Ichigo spoke up for the first time since his earlier outburst. Grimmjow glanced at the teen, but now he was the one refusing to meet his gaze. Yoruichi rolled her eyes at his statement. She still couldn't understand why Ichigo was so hellbent on protecting everyone around him, even his enemies for crying out loud. Urahara just smiled knowingly, hiding his face behind his fan.

"Not sure about that either. Guess I just couldn't think straight with all the blood I lost." Grimmjow couldn't stop his face from contorting into a smirk as he spoke. He just knew it would rile up the carrot-top.  
>And indeed, he wasn't disappointed. Ichigo got up from where he had been sitting next to Orihime and stormed over to Grimmjow's futon. He slammed his hands down on the side of the bed and brought his face so close to Grimmjow's that he could have counted the freckles on Ichigo's face had he wanted to. Not that he wanted to, of course. "You ungrateful son of a bitch!" The teen's chocolate eyes were fuming at him, and Grimmjow was loving every second of it. He hadn't expected it to be this much fun to piss the teen off.<p>

Now, to add some fuel to the fire: "Manners, Kurosaki. That's no way to talk to a guest now, is it?"

At first it looked like Ichigo would snap at him again, but as soon as he opened his mouth to give Grimmjow a piece of his mind, he closed it again. Grimmjow got slightly nervous when an evil smile stretched out on the teen's face. "You want us to treat you like a guest?" Ichigo asked in a strange voice.

Suddenly, the world flipped upside-down and Grimmjow somehow found himself on the floor. Scrambling to get back up, he noticed Ichigo holding the futon he'd been lying on earlier. He angrily got back up and stood at his full height in front of Ichigo, doing his best to intimidate the evilly smirking teen. "What the hell, Kurosaki?" he asked with malice dripping from every word.

Obviously his attempt at intimidation wasn't working. "It's already past seven. Time to get out of bed and start helping out around the shop. Moocher," Ichigo replied smugly.

"What?" Giggling could be heard behind him, so he turned around to see the two big-breasted women and the blond guy trying to keep their faces straight. "What's so damn funny?" Suddenly, a large shadow spread out around him as he felt something huge looming behind him. Grimmjow quickly turned around, only to have the crap scared out of him by Tessai's face, which was only an inch away from his. He instinctively backed away, accidentally bumping into Ichigo's chest as he did so.

"Guests here at Urahara's are expected to help out with some of the work. I'm sure Tessai-san has something for you to do," Ichigo gleefully spoke up. The teen's grin was in danger of splitting his face when Grimmjow felt two large hands grabbing him by his upper arms and effortlessly lifting him into the air. "Hey! Who the hell do you think you are! Lemme go, ya fucktard!" the Arrancar roared furiously, but to no avail.

"Well, I have always been curious to see what would happen if you used a Gigai on a Hollow." Suddenly Urahara was standing right next to him, holding something that looked like a human corpse, or a creepy, life-sized doll. It actually kind of remembered Grimmjow of those things Szayel had been working on in his lab, except this one had clothes on and wasn't in a giant test-tube filled with green liquid. He had only been in the Octava Espada's laboratory twice, and only because Aizen had ordered him to.  
>The first time had been for a routine check-up, although with Szayel involved it could hardly be called 'routine'. The second time had been for doing some more intense tests on him and on his Zanpakutou. He'd wanted to refuse of course, but then Aizen didn't really leave him much choice. That time, he had gone into Szayel's 'inner sanctum', where he kept all the really messed up stuff. Anyone who had seen the inside of that place would agree something was seriously wrong with that pink-haired freak's mind.<p>

"Wait, what are you-!" Urahara pushed the doll into him. Yes, INTO him. There was a bright flash, and then the weird doll was gone. And so were his handcuffs. Although Grimmjow was every bit as surprised as the rest of them, he decided to take advantage of their confusion. He decided to use the opportunity to break free, but the man holding him wouldn't budge an inch, no matter how much he struggled. What had they done to him? He felt even weaker than before, even though those damn Reiryoku-draining cuffs were gone. "You bastard! What the hell was that thing? What did you do to me?!"

"Interesting," Urahara remarked, completely ignoring Grimmjow's questions. "Gigai seem to function in exactly the same way with Arrancar as they do with Shinigami, though I already expected that. What's really remarkable however is that my Reiryoku-draining restraints were taken in by the Gigai as well. Well, since they are filled with Jaegerjaquez-san's energy, I guess it's only natural that the Gigai mistook them for a part of his body." Urahara lifted the shirt the Gigai (and by extension Grimmjow) was wearing and started poking at his abdomen. As he did so, Grimmjow noticed his Hollow Hole wasn't there anymore, which did little to ease his increasing sense of panic. His mask fragment had disappeared as well.  
>His fight or flight instincts kicked in, but with the way things were currently unfolding, it looked like Grimmjow wouldn't be doing much of either. Since the big guy holding him didn't look like he was going to let go any time soon, Grimmjow wasn't going anywhere. He felt like a caged animal; he was trapped in a body that wasn't his own, his powers were sealed and he could barely move. In short, Grimmjow was not happy. Far from it, actually.<p>

"Get the fuck off!" He struggled some more against the iron grip, but knew it was useless. He clenched his teeth and growled angrily at Ichigo, who was shamelessly laughing his ass off along with the dark-skinned woman.

"He's just checking to see if your Gigai is working properly Jaegerjaquez-san," Orihime spoke up with a small voice after taking pity on him. When Grimmjow's furious gaze landed on her, she was afraid he would snap at her to keep her mouth shut, but she took it a sign to keep talking when he didn't. "A Gigai is an artificial body. The Soul Reapers use it when they need to communicate with humans, or when they get injured during a mission. It's basically a vessel for your Spiritual body." She got pretty nervous when he kept staring at her so intently without saying anything.

"Are you the one that healed me, woman?", he eventually spoke. He seemed to have given up on resisting, for now at least. He still shot Urahara a nasty glare every few seconds though. The man had absolutely no concept of personal space, poking and prodding Grimmjow all over his new body.

"Y-yes. That was me." She couldn't help stumbling over her own words. She hadn't really expected him to address her directly. She stayed silent again for a while as those arctic blue orbs of his bored into her own eyes. Then he averted his gaze as he lowly mumbled "Thanks... I guess."

The nervousness she was feeling turned into astonishment. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez was actually thanking her? Like a normal person? The last time he had 'thanked' her he had done so by mutilating the two girls that had been guarding her. He had definitely changed since the last time they had met, possibly due to Ichigo's influence. Her friend did have that effect on people. There was a small smile tugging at her lips when she responded. "You're welcome."

Urahara finally stopped inspecting the elaborate tattoo of the number six on Grimmjow's back and let his shirt fall back into place. "Looks like you're good to go, Jaegerjaquez-san," he cheerily said before turning his attention to his partner in crime. "Any ideas on what to do with him, Tessai?"

The man looked pensive for a moment as he ran over his mental 'to-do' list. "Those mice in the training room have been getting on my nerves for a while now. He could start by catching them. Oh, and the garbage needs to be taken out. And Jinta got the toilet clogged up again..."

The list of degrading tasks he'd have to do went on. Grimmjow incredulously looked at the still-smiling teen. All he could think of to say was: "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Well, you did kick him in the nuts," Ichigo stated matter-of-factually while shrugging his shoulders. "You kinda deserved it." He chose to ignore the fact that he had done the exact same thing just yesterday. After all, that had been completely justified in Ichigo's opinion.

"If I'm going to be a slave to these freaks for the rest of my life, I'd rather you just kill me now. Would save me the embarrassment," he spat bitterly. "Where's my sword, by the way?" he added as an afterthought.

Ichigo didn't miss how Grimmjow's mind instantly went to his Zanpakutou when he thought about killing. That was... worrying. "And miss seeing you chase after a pack of rodents? Hell no. As for your sword, I'm sure Urahara's taking good care of it. Don't worry." Ichigo hadn't seen Grimmjow's sword since Urahara had come to his house to pick him up. The scientist was probably running some tests on it. He knew the man well enough to realize that he wouldn't pass up the chance to inspect an Espada's Zanpakutou. And unlike Kurotsuchi, Urahara wouldn't do anything bad to it. Although he would undoubtedly do _something_ to it.

"Now then, let's put you to work, Moocher-san." Tessai turned around and started walking down the hallway with Grimmjow slung over his shoulder, who had redoubled his efforts to escape. "From what I've heard, you take on a feline form when you release your sword. I believe you will be perfect for this particular task."

"I'm not a freaking cat, you retarded son of a...!"

As the sound of Grimmjow's swearing slowly died out, the four of them were finally able to release their pent-up laughter. Orihime tried her best to remain somewhat dignified since she felt sorry for him, but in the end, her efforts were in vain and she joined the rest of the group rolling on the floor.

Let's be honest here. Grimmjow was an asshole. There's no denying that. He was getting his just deserts. In fact, after everything he had done, this was letting him off rather easy.

After the four of them regained their composure somewhat, Yoruichi finally decided to go finish dressing herself, while Urahara slipped out with the excuse of needing to finish some project of his. "He's changed a lot in the time we haven't seen him, huh?" Orihime asked. "I wonder what he was doing over the last few weeks."

Ichigo thought about it. Grimmjow no longer needed to serve Aizen, so he could do whatever he wanted. So what could he have been doing all this time?

"Running around Hueco Mundo looking for strong Hollows to fight," Ichigo said with finality in his voice. He wasn't exactly best friends with Grimmjow, but he knew enough about him to realize that that was pretty much the only possibility.

Orihime giggled. "Yeah, I though so too." Her features turned pensive. "But, where would he find any? I mean, he is an Espada. They're the strongest Hollows there, aren't they? The only other one that survived was Tia Harribel, and I doubt she would be willing to fight him for no good reason. Who else is... there..."

They looked at each other wide-eyed. During all the craziness, they hadn't even had time to think of her. But now that they finally realized that she was still in Hueco Mundo, where Takahashi was, and may have already been for god knows how long, they were absolutely mortified.

"NEL!"

* * *

><p>"No," Grimmjow said petulantly. He was sitting cross-legged on the ground facing Tessai, glaring spitefully at the tall man sitting before him.<p>

"Come now Jaegerjaquez-san," Tessai tried to reason with him. "If you don't do you tasks, you won't get any food."

"I don't. Fucking. Give a shit. NO," he replied stubbornly, emphasizing every word.

"Grimmjow!" Ichigo let himself drop down to the ground, skipping the last few steps of the ladder that allowed access to the training room. He was soon followed by Orihime, and both headed towards the Arrancar as fast as their feet could carry them. "Grimmjow!"

What? were they here to laugh at him again? With or without his powers, he swore, if that brat so much as chuckled he'd kick his ass into next week. "Now what do you want, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow asked with clear annoyance in his voice.

"Grimmjow!" Ichigo called out for the third time now as he dropped to his knees beside the man, firmly grabbing his shoulders. "Do you know what happened to Nel?" It was silent for a moment as Grimmjow racked his brain over what the hell the teen was talking about. "Nel? You mean that Arrancar kid?"

Orihime and Ichigo's faces turned hopeful. "Yeah, her!"

"Not a clue." Grimmjow got a somewhat twisted sense of satisfaction at seeing the pair look so crestfallen.

"Come on Grimmjow, you've gotta know something. Please," Ichigo tried pleading with him.

Grimmjow just smirked tauntingly. "Now what would I gain from telling you?"

"You son of a..." Ichigo started, but he was stopped by Orihime tugging on his sleeve. She looked at him pleadingly, silently telling him to play along if it meant being able to help their friend. He sighed dejectedly. "Fine. If you help us out, I'll help you hunt down the damn rats," he relented.

Grimmjow considered it. He wasn't planning on actually doing anything of course, but if he agreed to this, he could always just dump all of the work onto the teen when it came down to it AND he would get something to eat. After all, he was pretty damn hungry. And while he'd rather starve than beg any of these people for food, he wasn't one to waste an opportunity when he saw one. Besides, it probably wouldn't take Ichigo too long with that fancy Bankai of his. The kid had always been pretty eager to use it first chance he got. "Alright, deal. But I thought they were mice?"

"Yeah, whatever," Ichigo hastily stated, not caring whatsoever at the moment. "Now come on, tell us."

"So hasty..." Grimmjow teased, getting a glare from the teen. "Well, some time after you left me there all by myself in the middle of that goddamn desert, bleeding, ready to be eaten by any passing Hollow-" He spoke grudgingly, becoming more and more annoyed at the teen that was sitting next to him -and was still touching him- with every word. Ichigo cut him off mid-sentence, though. "I'm sorry, alright! Orihime just got kidnapped right under our noses, I didn't exactly have the time to worry about you!"

"Um, if you don't mind me interrupting, Jaegerjaquez-san," Orihime piped up. "How did you survive?"

The former Espada raised a single blue eyebrow at her. "Where did you think I was going with this? As I was saying: after you just plain abandoned me while I was dying, I passed out from losing too much blood. I was out for quite a while, but when I woke up..." He clenched his jaw, looking like he was remembering something particularly disgusting. "I woke up, all covered in drool, with that _thing_ sitting next to me. If she hadn't saved my life I would have strangled the little shit right then and there." He still seemed pretty upset about having been drooled on. "Anyway, I went off by myself after that. Wandered around for a while. Killed stuff." His expression turned eerily content when he thought about killing stuff.

Ichigo, Orihime and Tessai exchanged worried glances. Well, at least know they that their guess had been correct. Not that there was ever any doubt, really...

"Not sure how long it was, but eventually I made it back to Las Noches" Grimmjow continued. "Well, what's left of it anyway. Turns out Harribel survived, and set up some sort of 'safe zone' for the surviving Arrancar in the ruins of the fortress. It's not like I actually liked any of those fuckers to begin with, so I didn't stay there for long. That was the last place I saw your retarded little friend at, so if you want to look for her that's where I'd start. Although I haven't actually been there for quite some time. I don't know what happened to the base after I left," he finished.

"I see. I will inquire with the boss about setting up a scouting mission." Tessai got up and headed for the ladder. "Now then, Kurosaki-dono, Jaegerjaquez-san, if you would..." With one hand already on the ladder, he gestured toward a pack of mice that were happily running around the giant room.

"Err... Right," Ichigo replied sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. Grimmjow just ground his teeth angrily as Tessai started climbing. His temper had already started rising again.

"Hey, where are you going?", the orange-haired teen asked upon seeing Orihime prepare to leave too.

She smiled apologetically at him. "I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun. I'd help out too, but I promised Tatsuki I'd meet up with her by nine. I still need to shower and stuff like that..."

"Oh. Well, alright. I guess I'll see you later then. Say hi to Tatsuki for me when you see her." They said their goodbyes, and Ichigo watched her until she disappeared through the small opening in the ceiling before he turned back to Grimmjow. "Well, no use stalling. Let's hurry up and catch these suckers so I can go home." He started walking towards the pile of small cages Tessai had provided them with, but stopped when he noticed that Grimmjow didn't do anything. "Hey, I said I'd help you, but don't think I'm doing all of this by myself."

Grimmjow just continued to stare at him with a wondering expression. "What the hell's wrong with you? 'Set up a scouting mission'? I thought you'd bust into Hueco Mundo guns blazing the second I told you where she was."

"Well, normally, I probably would," Ichigo admitted, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "But I lost my powers. Just a few hours ago, actually. If I went to Hueco Mundo now, I'm pretty sure I'd just get eaten by Hollows."

The kid lost his powers? Now that, Grimmjow had not been expecting. He felt a twinge of disappointment. He had been looking forward to whooping the teen's ass in their inevitable rematch. "How the hell did you lose your powers?"

"I had a little run-in with Takahashi myself. The guy who attacked you," he added after seeing Grimmjow's confusion. "Well, my Reiatsu was already unstable, so all it took was a few thousand volts and BAM: gone." Ichigo wasn't able to completely hide his surprise at the sudden interest Grimmjow was displaying. Anticipating the man's next question, he kept talking. "I've known for a while I was going to lose my powers eventually. I mean, that's the price I had to pay in order to use the Final Getsuga Tenshou. It was the only way to beat Aizen. Bastard used the Hogyoku to basically turn himself into a god. That stupid piece of rock..." He mumbled to himself, inwardly cursing both Urahara and Aizen for ever creating the little sphere that had caused everyone so much trouble.

Interested in hearing how Aizen had finally met his end, Grimmjow walked over to Ichigo and picked up some mouse traps. There had been rumors going around Hueco Mundo that Aizen had been taken down by a certain orange-haired Soul Reaper, but Grimmjow wasn't one to accept rumors as fact. He wanted to hear how that stuck-up son of a bitch that had forced him to call him Aizen-sama had finally gotten what he deserved. Plus, he was starting to get a new-found respect for the kid. Not only had he succeeded in killing the man even Grimmjow knew he himself stood no chance against, Ichigo had also managed to survive an encounter with the monster that had forced him to run for his life. "So, you basically killed him in one hit, but that attack cost you your Shinigami powers?"

"Well, no, not exactly. We exchanged some blows before that, and when I did use it, that bastard survived even that. For fuck's sake, I'd nearly cut him in half but still the Hogyoku managed to save him. It was only because of Urahara's sealing spell that he finally went down."

"What?!" Grimmjow suddenly exclaimed loudly, making Ichigo jump. "Are you telling me that piece of shit's still alive?!"

"Well, yeah. But according to Urahara, he's going to be in solitary confinement for at least the next two thousand years or so." That seemed to make Grimmjow's anger subside. He couldn't suppress a chuckle at the thought of 'Lord Aizen' getting to spend the next two millennia staring at a wall.

"Alright, I can live with that. I guess just killing him would have been letting him off easy. Better to let him rot for all eternity in whatever hole the Soul Reapers decided to throw him." He took another look around the training grounds, a large family of mice scattering when Grimmjow's gaze landed on the rodents. "Kurosaki. How the hell did these things even get down here?"

The teen exhaled wearily. "That's a long story. It all started when Yoruichi wanted to get some training done in her cat form..."

* * *

><p>It wasn't until just before noon that Ichigo finally managed to get home. "I'm back!" he called out to no-one in particular while he kicked off his shoes.<p>

"Welcome home, Ichi-nii!" Yuzu called back from inside the house. Ichigo walked into the kitchen area, where he was warmly greeted by his sister. She was busy stirring the contents of some large pots she had on the stove. "Karin isn't here yet?" Ichigo asked her while taking a can of soda out of the refrigerator.

"No, she's still at soccer-practice. She should be home by one if she's not running late," she replied easily. She may have only been twelve years old, but Yuzu acted as the mother of the Kurosaki household. She knew her entire family's weekly schedule by heart.

She turned away from the stove, leaving her pots and pans for what they were for the moment in favor of checking up on her big brother. While her Spiritual abilities may not have been anything worth mentioning when you compared them with those of the rest of her family, she wasn't completely oblivious to otherworldly phenomena. She had grown accustomed to the strong, protective aura her brother seemed to be constantly emitting. Right now though, even when she was standing so close to him, Yuzu could barely feel anything. "Ichi-nii, is everything alright?" she asked, somewhat concerned.

Ichigo responded by raising an orange eyebrow, unable to speak and gulp down his drink simultaneously .

"Urahara-san called last night to let us know you'd be staying with him, but he wouldn't say why." She stared up at him with those big, worried eyes of hers and Ichigo knew right away it would be wasted effort to try and hide the truth from her.  
>He tried his best to give her a reassuring smile, but due to his exhaustion it looked more like a grimace. "I'm fine Yuzu, it's just..." he trailed off, not knowing where to start. "I'll tell you later alright? Over dinner. Dad and Karin should probably hear this too."<p>

No, it wasn't alright to her. Something was seriously troubling her older brother, and Yuzu didn't want to let him go until she knew exactly what it was and what she could do about it. Instead, what she said was: "Alright. You should go get some rest before supper's ready. You look like you didn't get much sleep tonight."

"Yeah, you're right. Call me when it's time to eat, alright?" She nodded, and he flashed her a weak smile before leaving her by herself, dumping the empty can in the garbage bin as he passed it. Since he was able to cross the living room safely without being attacked by his clinically insane father, Ichigo took it as a sign that old Goatface was still busy at work. He would probably be helping him out at the clinic more often now that he wasn't a Shinigami anymore.

He had been thinking about it a lot lately, and he had decided that he wanted to follow in his father's footsteps and become a doctor. But not just because of his father, of course. He had always wanted to help people, that was just his nature. Now that he couldn't protect people by slaying giant, soul-eating monstrosities anymore, he'd protect them in his own way. By tending to their wounds after they had an accident, making sure they'd live to see another day and spend more time with their loved ones.

He slowly trudged up the stairs, starting to feel just how tired he really was after the events of last night. And those of the night before that. And let's not forget those from this morning; those mice had been a lot faster than they looked. Watching Grimmjow running after them had been absolutely priceless though, so that had been worth it in Ichigo's opinion. The man had turned into a raving lunatic after the sixth time a particularly annoying critter had managed to elude him. Some of the swear words Grimmjow had used this morning would have made a hardened sailor blush.

When he finally reached his bed, Ichigo flopped down on it and buried his face in his pillow. He was out like a light in seconds.

* * *

><p>"Iiiiichigoooooooooooo!"<p>

Said teen's eyes snapped wide open. The sound was coming from the hallway. Even as he thought that, his father burst out the door yelling "Time to wake up, son!" before jumping up as high as the ceiling allowed, aiming a flying kick straight for his only son's face. However, this was clearly not the first time this had happened, as his son moved out of harms way with lightning reflexes that could only have been attained by years upon years of training. Isshin Kurosaki hit the bed with such force that the mattress' springs launched him back up into the air. Consequently, his head smashed straight through the ceiling where it remained stuck, leaving the rest of Isshin's body flailing around helplessly. "OW! Ichigo my darling son, help daddy get down!" His cries were muffled, but still clearly comprehensible. A cloud of dust and debris came down from the ceiling, making Ichigo's room look like it was a construction site.

Ichigo glared at the hole where his fathers head had disappeared into, not having the slightest intention of helping the lunatic out. It was his own damn fault this had happened. "Oi, get that fixed when you manage to get your head out. And clean my bed while you're at it, you're getting dust all over the sheets!" He started walking toward the hallway, fully intent on leaving his father there. He would get out by himself. Eventually.

"Nooo, don't leave daddy behind! It's so dark in here! And I think I can see something moving!" he wailed with his feet flailing around. "Why are you so mean to daddy?! OW! Something bit me!"

Ichigo simply headed downstairs, completely ignoring his fathers pleas for help. The idiot had gotten himself into this mess with his stupidity, so he could get himself out of it too. What kind of a father woke his children up by kicking them in the face? Some messed up family he had.

He followed the wonderful scent of food that was coming from the living room, his mouth already watering at just the thought of Yuzu's delicious cooking. Both his sisters were already in their seats, waiting for the two men to come join them. Ichigo sat down in his usual spot next to Karin, saying hi to her as he did so. She glanced at him suspiciously when she noticed something off about him, but decided not to comment on it.

"What's keeping dad so long?" Yuzu wondered out loud when the man didn't come down.

"He had some stuff to take care of. Said we could start without him," Ichigo lied easily. Faint cries for help could be heard coming from upstairs, but nobody paid them any mind.

"So Ichi-nii, what was it you wanted to talk abou-" Yuzu was cut off by the sound of the doorbell ringing. The three siblings exchanged glances; nobody seemed to have been expecting any guests for lunch.

"I'll get it." Ichigo reluctantly left his plate of mouth-watering spaghetti behind and headed toward the front door, his stomach protesting loudly the whole way there. If this turned out to be some retarded kid that had rang the bell just to annoy him and then ran away, there would be hell to pay. When he opened the door, he wasn't greeted by some kid, though. "What the hell are you doing here? !" the teen called out in shock. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he saw who had come to his house.

Before him stood a tall, blue-haired, devilishly smirking male Arrancar. "Got bored. Hoped you'd be able to entertain me, Kurosaki."

Oh, this was not happening.


	6. An Unexpected Visitor

**Chapter 6: An Unexpected Visitor**

"Go away," Ichigo deadpanned. Not even bothering to wait for a reply, he tried to slam the door shut right in Grimmjow's face. Unfortunately for Ichigo though, the other man still had much better reflexes than the average human, even if he did happen to be in a Gigai at the moment.

Grimmjow had quickly stuck out his hand to keep the door from closing all the way. "I barely managed to escape from that madhouse, Kurosaki," he grit out with a haunted look in his eyes. "I am NOT going back there." The man looked rather tense. Actually, scratch that; Ichigo could literally _feel_ the stress radiating off Grimmjow.  
><em>Wow,<em> Ichigo thought to himself. Urahara and the rest of his crew at the shop seemed to have already managed to drive Grimmjow to the edge of a mental breakdown. That must have been some kind of record.

"So you came here instead?" the teen asked incredulously, still doing his best to shut the door. "If you got away, why didn't you just make a run for it?" Ichigo asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Which it sort of was, really.

Grimmjow threw him an unimpressed look. "Are you really that slow Kurosaki?" Grimmjow stepped back, putting an end to their little standoff. He knew he had Ichigo's attention now; the kid was way too stubborn to walk away after being insulted to his face. And indeed, instead of taking the chance to shut Grimmjow out, Ichigo stepped out onto the porch. He scowled angrily at Grimmjow as he waited for him to elaborate on his earlier statement.

Grimmjow smirked. The teen could be so predictable sometimes. "See this?" The man asked, gesturing at his body. "As long as I'm stuck in this stupid thing- this-"

"Gigai," Ichigo helpfully supplied.

"Yeah, that. As long as I'm trapped in this _Gigai_, I have literally zero Reiryoku. Not even enough to open a freaking Garganta," He muttered disdainfully. "I can't get back back to Hueco Mundo like this, Kurosaki."

"Yes, I got that part," Ichigo replied impatiently. He wished Grimmjow would just fuck off already so he could get back to eating. No way was he letting Yuzu's home-cooked spaghetti get cold. "What I don't get is why you're _here_, at my house," Ichigo hissed.

"Well, where else was I supposed to go?!" Grimmjow snapped, making Ichigo flinch. He hadn't expected the man to get agitated so easily. Grimmjow averted his gaze and took a step back, running a hand through his long, unruly hair to calm himself. "Where else was I supposed to go?" he repeated in a lower voice. "Believe it or not, there ain't much for me to do in this world. Besides, even if I could go back to Hueco Mundo," he looked Ichigo straight in the eye, his arctic blue irises almost glowing with barely contained anger, "as long as that piece of shit is still out there I'd just be getting myself killed," he spat. "But I am _not _letting him get away with this, Kurosaki. I'm gonna get stronger, and when I do, I am going to rip that bastard's guts out _with my bare hands," _he hissed. And then he started to smile. Grimmjow's expression changed to one of sadistic glee in a matter of seconds.  
>"I'm going to enjoy every fucking second of it," He laughed excitedly. "When I finally get my hands on him... he'll be <em>begging<em> me to kill him by the time I'm done."

A chill ran down Ichigo's spine due to the look Grimmjow was giving him. The teen had just been given a reminder of exactly how dangerous the man standing before him truly was. He may have taken on a human form and mindset, but at the center of his being, Grimmjow was still a Hollow; a savage beast driven only by instinct. Still, it was hard to believe that this was the same Grimmjow who had been absolutely terrified of Takahashi just yesterday. Maybe he was bipolar or something?

No. If anything, it made perfect sense. Grimmjow's aspect of death was destruction. He was simply coping with his fear in the only way he knew how: by completely destroying that which caused him to be afraid in the first place.

Ichigo opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. He had no idea of what to say in this situation. Stubborn and determined as Grimmjow was, Ichigo doubted he would become strong enough to face the rogue Shinigami on even ground, no matter how much he trained. Takahashi's power was monstrous. Ichigo wouldn't be forgetting the experience of being crushed by such overwhelming force anytime soon.  
>The awkward tension between the two men grew as neither of them spoke.<p>

Luckily, Yuzu chose that moment to make an appearance. "Ichi-nii, is everything alright? Your food is getting cold." She walked up to the front door, curiously watching Grimmjow as she went, completely unaware of how dangerous the man before her was. Grimmjow stared back at her, already looking a lot more mentally stable now that he was being distracted from his objective of bloody revenge. "Is he a friend of yours, Ichi-nii? Why don't you ask him to join us for dinner? I made plenty."

Ichigo tensed. Ask Grimmjow over for dinner? Might as well go find a wild bear and ask it to play house with you. "No, Yuzu, he's not-" He attempted to stop her, but the damage had already been done.

"You have food in there? Good. I'm fucking starving." Taking advantage of Ichigo's momentary confusion, Grimmjow slipped past the teen and entered the house. "That greedy shopkeeper gave me one- ONE- bowl of shitty rice," he complained out loud. Yuzu didn't seem to be too taken with his choice of words.

"Please don't use that sort of language inside the house," she admonished him. "Oh, and you can leave your shoes over there." Yuzu smiled politely whilst saying so, but both Ichigo and Grimmjow could sense it was more of an order than a request. She was starting to remind Ichigo more and more of captain Unohana with each passing day. He wondered if she would become as scary as the Fourth Division's captain when she was grown up. Though it was hard to picture his little sister wearing the same expression that Unohana tended to use when things didn't go her way; the one that looked like she was smiling because something had amused her, yet also said 'do as I tell you or learn the true meaning of suffering'.

Grimmjow gave her a look that very clearly relayed his annoyance, but decided to surprise Ichigo by actually listening to the young girl. He took off the old, ratty sneakers as well as the jacket Urahara had given him and left them behind at the assigned spot before following Yuzu to the living-slash-dining room.

"What's your name?" Yuzu asked conversationally as she led him further into the house.

"Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez." He looked around the house curiously as he went.

"Jaeger...jaquez?" Yuzu managed to pronounce with some effort. "That doesn't sound like a Japanase name. Are you from another country, by any chance?" She asked with poorly masked excitement. Yuzu seemed to be delighted at the prospect of having a foreigner over for dinner. She had always been interested in different cultures. Unfortunately, Grimmjow's 'culture' may have been just be a little _too_ different for her tastes...

Meanwhile Ichigo, who was completely stupefied by what had just occurred, just stood there slack-jawed as he looked at his sister and Grimmjow's retreating backs. It was only when they were already out of sight that he finally managed to shake himself out of his stupor. The teen slammed the door shut before hastily following them.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" he hissed at Grimmjow once he caught up with him, soft enough for his sisters not to be able to hear it.

"What? She said there was food, and I'm hungry," he shrugged noncommittally. Not seeming too interested in Ichigo's sputtered objections, he stalked off toward the table and sat down in the empty chair next to Karin. She glanced curiously at him for a moment before shrugging and focusing her attention on her plate again. If she was at all surprised that the stranger who had nearly bled out in her brother's bedroom two nights earlier was now sitting at their dinner table, she certainly didn't let it show.

Yuzu quickly scooped some more spaghetti onto a plate, and she put it down in front of Grimmjow. The Arrancar looked at the offered food suspiciously. He sniffed it to see if he could detect any poison- better safe than sorry, after all- and when he didn't, picked up the utensils Yuzu had provided him with.

Ichigo sighed, deciding it was pointless to try and kick Grimmjow out now. He figured that as long as the man kept up this surprisingly good behavior, he may as well stay over for a while. After everything Grimmjow had been through in these last few days, he deserved some downtime, Ichigo mused to himself. He sat down at the other side of the table so he was facing said Arrancar. Now that he had the chance to observe the man more closely, Ichigo noticed he was looking a lot better already. He had apparently been allowed to take a shower at Urahara's, and had also gotten a chance too shave seeing as the stubble was no longer there. His hair on the other hand was still just as messy as before, but at least it wasn't so greasy anymore.

Ichigo looked on as Grimmjow tried- and failed -to pick up the pasta with his fork. "I take it you've never eaten spaghetti before?" he asked, sounding rather amused.

Grimmjow glared at him before turning back to his plate and stubbornly continued trying to scoop the food into his mouth. 'Trying' being the operative word. Unable to prevent a chuckle from escaping, Ichigo decided to take pity on him. "You just stick your fork in and twirl it around. Like this, watch."

Grimmjow grudgingly watched what Ichigo did, highly annoyed at the fact that he couldn't even eat any of the food in this world without receiving instructions first, like he was some sort of retard. He repeated what Ichigo had done, and just the fact that it actually worked already did wonders for his mood. Once he actually got the pasta into his mouth though, all his worries went straight out the window.  
>"This's fucking good, Kurosaki." he mumbled with his mouth still nearly full, a second portion already en route.<p>

Ichigo let out a laugh at seeing the former Espada wolf down his food like that. "I'm glad you like it. Yuzu's the one who made it."

Things quieted down after that, as everyone was focused on their own plates. In the next few minutes the only sounds came from the occasional scraping of utensils, or when somebody asked to have the water passed to them, or when muffled screams from somewhere on the first floor reached the living room.

"Can I have seconds?"

Three pairs of eyes turned to stare at Grimmjow. And indeed; while their plates where still mostly full, his was completely empty. In fact, it looked as clean as if it had just gotten out of the dishwasher. Grimmjow's face however, appeared to have collected half of the sauce while he was busy inhaling his food. Ichigo and Karin both started laughing, which earned each of them a glare from Grimmjow, while Yuzu looked overjoyed that their guest had enjoyed her spaghetti so much. She quickly took over his plate and started piling more pasta onto it, while Grimmjow looked on with his mouth already watering at the thought of getting to eat more of the delicious food.  
>Ichigo was still smiling. Considering this was Grimmjow they were dealing with, he believed that things couldn't have possibly gone any better than this.<p>

But of course, quiet never lasted very long in the Kurosaki household.  
>"Ichigooooo!"<br>And here came the main reason for that.

Nearly scaring them all to death - especially Grimmjow who wasn't used to this sort of thing - Isshin suddenly appeared right out of freaking nowhere and kicked his only son in the side of the head, knocking him out of his chair and landing on top of him, where he proceeded to grab Ichigo in a chokehold. How he had gotten downstairs without any of them noticing was anyone's guess.

Well, that was just what Ichigo needed right now. His batshit insane father having another one of his little 'episodes'. As if the situation with Grimmjow wasn't already precarious enough as it was. "How could you just leave your poor father up there! It was cold and dusty, and I'm pretty sure a rat bit me!" he wailed while attempting to strangle his son.

Said son's temper reached critical levels in record time, and before Isshin even realized what was happening, he was already airborne. "How many times do I have to tell you..." Ichigo growled dangerously, holding his father up over his head without any noticeable effort, "To stop DOING THAT!" he finished with a furious snarl, launching his screaming father through the air.

BAM! Everyone except Ichigo winced as Isshin roughly came in contact with the floor, bouncing back up a few times before sliding to a stop against the wall, right below the poster of Masaki.

"Masakiii," He whined. "The children are being so- so mean to me again," he cried, a little dazed from his rough encounter with the floor. He then promptly passed out and started snoring, making everyone present sweatdrop.

Ichigo took a deep, cleansing breath to calm himself before reclaiming his seat at the dinner table. "I'm sorry you had to see that," he calmly told Grimmjow. His sisters didn't even pay the injured man any mind and simply continued their meals.

The man just stared at him for a few seconds in bewilderment. Ichigo stared right back, despite feeling his cheeks redden in embarrassment at the whole situation. Suddenly, Grimmjow snorted, breaking the tense silence. He threw his head back as he laughed loudly, completely ignoring the heated glare Ichigo was sending him. "And here I thought the human world was going to be boring!" he chuckled.

"Glad to see you're getting enjoyment out of my misery," Ichigo replied darkly. "Try living with him for sixteen years, see if it's still funny then."

Grimmjow just smirked at the silently brooding teen, before redirecting his attention toward his plate, which Yuzu had been kind enough to refill with the delicious substance the human world knew as spaghetti.

With Grimmjow once again busy inhaling his food, and her father down for the count (at least for the next few minutes), Yuzu determined that there would be no more interruptions and took her chance to finally ask the question that had been on the tip of her tongue ever since her brother had come home. "Ichi-nii."

Ichigo looked up at her. "What is it, Yuzu?"

"What happened last night?" She asked softly, already knowing it couldn't be anything good judging by the way her brother had been acting. "You promised you would tell us everything."

Ichigo faltered for just a moment. With all the chaos his father and Grimmjow had caused, he had forgotten all about that. His brows furrowed as he once again donned his signature scowl. He was already dreading the fact that he would have to go over everything that had happened yet again while the wounds were still so fresh. Not just that, but knowing his sister, she would probably take the news pretty hard.  
>The teen glanced up at Grimmjow, who had stopped licking his plate clean so he could listen to his story as well.<p>

He took a deep breath, and started recounting the events of the night before.

* * *

><p>"... and when I woke up again, I was back at Urahara's. That's about it," Ichigo finished.<p>

Ten agonizingly long minutes after he had begun talking, silence reigned once again in the Kurosaki household. Ichigo's father had regained consciousness sometime during his explanation, but even he didn't know what to say. Everyone save Grimmjow was trying to come to terms with the fact that in the 24 hours they hadn't seen him, Ichigo had been beaten, tortured and had his powers stripped away from him. And he had still left out some details as to not upset Yuzu any more than he already had.

Ichigo wasn't a Shinigami anymore. Of course, they had all known that he would have lost his powers eventually, but none of them had expected it to happen so suddenly.

His father was behaving himself rather well: he had slipped back into his more serious personality. While it was certainly a nice change to see him acting like an adult for once, it was still rather discomforting. He didn't seem to be paying much attention to Grimmjow, but Ichigo knew he was closely monitoring him. His sisters on the other hand... well, no surprises there. Yuzu was staring at him with tears in her eyes and the occasional sniffle, while Karin tried her best to look like she was unaffected by what she had heard yet didn't _quite_ manage to hide her concern.

"Ichi-nii..." Yuzu started with a watery voice. Grimmjow not-so-subtly rolled his eyes at the display of emotion.

Ichigo shot him a quick glare before turning his attention back to his sister. "You don't have to worry about me, Yuzu. I'm alright now," he tried to comfort her, but without success.

"I know that!" she said petulantly. "But after hearing what that- that awful man did to you... You've already been through enough, Ichigo!" She cried. "It's not fair! Why do you always have to be the one to suffer?" She wiped at her face, stubbornly trying to stop the tears that kept on coming. "And what about Rukia? Your friends in Soul Society? You won't be able to see them anymore, will you? After everything you've done for Karakura and the Soul Society... It's just not fair!" she sobbed quietly.

"Hey, it's alright," he attempted to calm her down. "We all knew it was gonna happen eventually. Besides, I haven't lost all of my powers yet. I can still see spirits; in fact I talked to Rukia just this morning."

"But still..." Yuzu spoke up quietly. "You keep getting hurt. Even since before you became a Soul Reaper." She slowly looked up at Ichigo. It was heartbreaking to see her looking at him like that. "When is it going to end?"

The other two members of the family looked at each other. Both Karin and Isshin had already asked themselves that same question many times. Sometimes it seemed like Ichigo just kept on going from one big tragedy to the next.

Grimmjow on the other hand, was absolutely nauseated by what he was hearing. He'd never be able understand humans; making such a big stink over nothing. So Kurosaki had gotten his ass kicked a couple times, big deal. If he lost, it just meant he wasn't strong enough. Instead of whining and bitching and holding a freaking pity party, he should be trying to toughen the fuck up so he could tear that Shinigami bastard to pieces, like Grimmjow himself was planning on doing.

Ichigo remained silent. He didn't know how to answer his sister's question. "I don't know Yuzu," he eventually spoke up. "But no matter what's up ahead, I'll make it through somehow." He smiled encouragingly at her. "I always do."

* * *

><p>"You seriously watch this crap, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow asked, looking annoyed. They were sitting on the couch in the living room, watching TV. The atmosphere in the house had already improved dramatically now that everyone had had some time to cope with Ichigo's revelation.<p>

"It's daytime television, what did you expect?" the teen countered lazily, stretching and popping his back. He continued flipping channels. He had to agree with Grimmjow on this one though, the show they had been watching was total crap, even by daytime television standards. It's like TV producers weren't even trying anymore these days. Nearly every shitty series being aired right now was just a clone of something else. Nearly the exact same plot, if you could even call it that, just with different actors.

Grimmjow glared at him. "How about something that doesn't make my want to scratch my own eyes out?"

Ichigo kept aimlessly changing the channel. "I'm afraid there's not going to be much that fits your criteria." After coming across no less than five home shopping channels in a row, Ichigo decided to call it quits. He switched the television off, turning to face Grimmjow. "So. I'm curious; why did you come to me? When you were wounded, I mean." Ichigo bluntly asked. When dealing with someone like Grimmjow, Ichigo figured there wasn't any point in circling around the topic. The direct approach would most likely yield the best results.

Grimmjow shot him an angry look. It didn't look like Ichigo would be getting an answer any time soon. Of course, the teen had figured that would be the case. And he wasn't planning on backing down that easily. "Come on. I'm serious," he persisted. "Couldn't you have run to Las Noches? You said one of the other Espada set up a safe zone for Arrancar there, didn't you?"

Grimmjow looked at the teen incredulously, like he couldn't believe Ichigo was really that stupid. "Oh, yeah. Great idea. Lure him straight to an all-you-can-eat Arrancar buffet." His words were dripping with so much sarcasm a mop would be needed in the room later on.

"Point." Ichigo had already realized the flaw in his reasoning about halfway through his sentence. He really needed a better brain-to-mouth filter. "Then why not go straight to Orihime?" He pressed on. Grimmjow threw his head back in annoyance. "You know how she is. She would have just healed you and let you walk right out again after she was done."

"I don't know, alright!" Grimmjow raised his voice. "I didn't exactly have time to think it over rationally! I was drowning in my own blood, for fuck's sake! I was freaking dying, but for some retarded reason all I could think about was what happened with you and Nnoitra!"

They fell into a stunned silence. Grimmjow averted his gaze, refusing to look at Ichigo. Ichigo didn't know what to say. "Fuck," Grimmjow swore. "I guess I just... followed my instincts or something. Coming here seemed like my best option." He seemed uncomfortable, if not plain embarrassed. The moment passed fairly quickly though. "Now let me ask you something, Kurosaki." He locked eyes with him again. "Why _did _you save me?" It seemed it was Ichigo's turn to be grilled now.

"What, you thought I was just going to watch you get your head crushed into paste by that SUV?" Grimmjow glared at him again. He probably didn't like being reminded of that. Again, defective brain-to-mouth filter. "With Nnoitra, I meant." Grimmjow ground out. Ichigo was rather amused to see that his ears had reddened a little. He really was feeling embarrassed. This wasn't a side of Grimmjow Ichigo had ever expected to see. The man looked like he was starting to get impatient though, so Ichigo's mind went back to his earlier question. "Well... Same thing, really. I couldn't just let your own ally kill you right under my nose."

"Why the hell not? I was trying to kill you not even a full minute before he showed up." Grimmjow deadpanned.

"Well yeah," Ichigo began, slightly uncomfortable. "But you also saved my life by bringing Orihime to me after I fought Ulquoirra. That kind of evens it out."

"I didn't want to _save _you, I wanted to _fight_ y-"

"Let's just call it even," Ichigo interrupted him. This could go on for hours if someone didn't put a stop to it.

They threatened to fall into an uncomfortable silence again. Ichigo didn't know what he could possibly talk about with Grimmjow. It was surprisingly easy to forget, but he was sitting next to perhaps the most violent member out of all the Espada. No suitable topics for conversation came to mind.  
>Said Espada was currently busy trying to keep his hair from getting into his eyes, but some stubborn locks just kept getting in the way. "You could let Yuzu cut it if you want," Ichigo spoke up. The words had already left his mouth before Ichigo even realized it.<p>

Surprisingly enough, Grimmjow seemed to actually be considering it. "Your sister? She can cut hair?"

"Yeah. She always does mine." Grimmjow still looked doubtful. At that exact moment, the hairs he had managed to get out of the way all fell right in front of his eyes again like a curtain. "Alright, fuck this. Let's do it."

A few minutes later, they were all set up in the upstairs bathroom. Grimmjow sat in front of the mirror with a large towel draped over his shoulders to prevent hair from getting onto his clothes. As Ichigo had expected, his sister had been overjoyed at the prospect of getting to cut Grimmjow's hair. He had noticed her throwing glances at it occasionally when they were having dinner.

Yuzu's career in hairdressing had started out by giving her brother the occasional trim when he didn't feel like going to a professional barber. It hadn't taken her long to persuade Ichigo to let her do more than just that. He simply couldn't say no to her. Admittedly, the first two or three attempts didn't work out all that well, but she was a fast learner. In fact, right now, she was the only one allowed to get anywhere near Ichigo's head with scissors in hand. Eventually, after seeing the good results she had with Ichigo, Karin and his father had started going to her as well when they needed a quick cut.

"Alright, Grimmjow-san. What would you like me to do?" Grimmjow began giving her instructions as Ichigo watched. What a strange situation this had turned into. Well, actually it had been strange for a while now, but they had just reached a whole new level of weird. If someone had told him yesterday that this was how today was going to turn out, Ichigo would have laughed in that person's face.

The floor was quickly starting to get covered with locks of blue hair. The longer Yuzu worked on Grimmjow, the more Ichigo recognized the Espada he had fought one month prior.

"There, that should be about it," Yuzu stated after a good twenty minutes, stepping back to admire her work. "Ichi-nii, could you hand me the hair-gel?" Ichigo did as he was asked and gave her the bottle. Grimmjow still looked a bit doubtful about his new hairdo. It was a lot shorter now, and frankly looked rather messy. That quickly changed once Yuzu started styling it with the gel. The sticky substance allowed her to quickly shape his hair just the way it had been the last time Grimmjow had been in Karakura Town. Some stubborn strands fell back down, coming to hang right in between Grimmjow's eyes. Now it was perfect.

"You've really got a talent for this Yuzu," Ichigo said appreciatively, looking Grimmjow over. Grimmjow ran a hand through his freshly-cut hair while looking in the mirror. He smirked. He seemed rather pleased with what he saw. "Thanks kid. Looks pretty damn good."

Yuzu beamed. She was so happy that she was being praised for her work that she completely ignored Grimmjow's swearing. "You're welcome!" She took the towel away from Grimmjow and wiped some stray hairs off of him, still smiling from ear to ear. She dumped the towel in the laundry basket before picking the whole thing up. "I'll go put this in the washing machine," she said as she left the room. They could hear her humming happily as she went down the stairs.

"Well Kurosaki," Grimmjow said as he got up and stretched, "this was one hell of a weird day."

Ichigo laughed. The first time he genuinely laughed since his encounter with Takahashi. "You're telling me." He smiled at Grimmjow. "All things considered though, I wouldn't say it was a bad day."

"Well I'm still not too happy about being stuck here in this shithole," Grimmjow glared, but there wasn't any real heat behind his words. "But... it could be a lot worse, I guess." He exited the bathroom, so Ichigo followed him. "I should probably head back. Wouldn't want the freak on steroids to come looking for me."

Ichigo snorted at Grimmjow's description of Tessai. They headed down the stairs, reaching the hallway. "The shopkeeper said they'd be having a strategy meeting about that Katsumi guy tomorrow. He probably wants you to come." He started to put on his sneakers.

"So Urahara finally managed to contact Soul Society, then?"

"Think so. He and the other two locked themselves in the lab downstairs; I heard them saying something about a Captain Ukitake as they passed my room. I took it as my chance to get the hell out of there," he gruffly stated. Once finished tying his shoelaces, he stood back upright and grabbed his jacket off the coat hanger. "So... Guess I'll see you around then," Grimmjow said a bit unsure. He didn't sound too thrilled with the prospect, not that Ichigo had expected him to be. "Yeah. Tell Urahara I'll be there."

Grimmjow opened the front door, not acknowledging whether or not he had heard Ichigo. Ichigo watched him for a while as he went. Today had certainly been... Well, many things actually. But 'unexpected' was probably the word that fit best here. Just when Ichigo's life had become relatively normal again- and he used that term very, VERY loosely- Grimmjow's unexpected arrival had sent everything spiraling out of control once again. These last three days had been some of the craziest yet, which was saying a lot considering a normal day for Ichigo consisted of slaying soul-eating doom creatures.

Grimmjow was nearly out of sight now. Ichigo shuddered, goosebumps spreading over his arms. It had gotten colder pretty quickly. If temperatures kept dropping like this, it might even start snowing by the first week of December.

He was about to go back inside, but looked over his shoulder one last time. Grimmjow was doing the same thing. They looked at each other for just a moment, before breaking eye contact at the exact same time.

Ichigo closed the door and leaned back against it. Such a strange guy, Grimmjow. He still wasn't entirely sure what to think about him. One moment he looked downright homicidal, the other he willingly let his sister work on his hair for a good twenty minutes during which he patiently sat still. All he could really say about Grimmjow for now was that maybe he wasn't such a bad guy after all. When he wasn't busy trying to kill him, at least.

And Grimmjow had been right. They would see more of each other. Ichigo would have plenty of time to figure out just who Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez really was.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in an underground laboratory underneath a certain shop:<p>

Urahara was typing commands into a console at an insane pace. "Tessai, where is Jaegerjaquez-san right now?" he asked without looking away from the screen.

Tessai glanced at his own monitor. On it, a map of Karakura town was visible. If you looked closely, you could see a blinking red dot that was slowly moving away from the Kurosaki Clinic. "He seems to have just left Kurosaki-dono's house. He should arrive at the shop in about twenty minutes if he continues at this pace."

"Good. He's decided to come back voluntarily, then." He stopped typing and walked over to a large monitor. It had shown only static while they were talking. Now, an image started to appear while a crackling sound came from the speakers.

"H-lo? C- -ou -ear me now?" A blurry image of a white-haired Captain appeared on the screen.

"Yes, Ukitake-san. We can hear you just fine." Urahara confirmed. "Have you managed to find out any more?" He had already talked to the captain a few hours back. After discussing what their next course of action should be, they had decided to continue their conversation after gathering more information. Urahara had asked Yoruichi to infiltrate Hueco Mundo in order to find out what Takahashi was doing there. At the same time, Ukitake had set out with a team of experts to examine the area where Takahashi had been imprisoned.

Ukitake looked solemn. "We've confirmed it's him, not that there was any doubt. The seal appeared to be intact when we arrived, but when we inspected it more closely it turned out to hold not him, but the two men who had been on guard duty the night he escaped. They had been declared missing five days ago."

Urahara exhaled wearily. "So that's why nobody realized he had escaped. It certainly sounds like something he would do. But that still leaves us with the question of _how _he escaped."

"I'm afraid I can't give you an explanation. From what we know, Izanagi's Seal should have been impossible to break."

Tessai nodded in agreement. As a former Kido Corps Commander, he was one of the very few people who understood exactly how the powerful sealing spell worked. In fact, he had personally inspected Takahashi's seal. Theoretically, there was no way to break it from the inside. Even doing so from the outside required nothing less than a Kido Master on his or Hachi's level. No matter how proficient Takahashi may have been with Kido, there was simply no way he could have escaped on his own.

Urahara seemed lost in thought. He was a bit worried about Yoruichi, since she still hadn't come back. Knowing her though, she was perfectly fine and would probably be back soon. He pushed his concerns away for the time being. "Katsumi Takahashi, " he spoke slowly. "I honestly hadn't expected to hear that name ever again. There's not that many people left who still remember him."

"Not by that name at least," Ukitake added. "His legend still lives on. Even if it has been over a hundred years since that horrible battle, people still seem to remember the Angel of Death." Ukitake smiled weakly. The smile turned into a grimace as he remembered what had happened in the Seireitei 112 years ago. What he and the other captains had been forced to do. "After what we did to him, it's no surprise he wants to see us suffer."


	7. The Waiting Game

**Chapter 7: The Waiting Game**

With the passing of the weekend came a brand new school week and needless to say, Ichigo had not been able to get a lot of sleep last night. Between the awkward situation with Grimmjow, losing his powers and the fact that yet another highly dangerous individual with a grudge against Soul Society was out there, Ichigo had more than enough to worry about. School was definitely something he could have done without at the moment. Even so, with all the classes he had already missed thanks to his Hollow-hunting escapades, he couldn't possibly afford to skip any more. Miss Ochi had already threatened to hold him back a year if there were any more unexplained absences. So when at the end of the day the final bell rang, Ichigo had never felt so relieved.

"Finally," he muttered groggily to himself as he raised his head from his desk. His Math notebook, which he had been using as an improvised pillow, had gotten stuck to his cheek, with his own drool acting as glue. Orihime giggled when she noticed. She sat next to him, and had done her best to keep him somewhat awake during class, but had eventually given up and allowed him to sleep through last period.

"Kurosaki-kun..." she started, pointing a finger at his face.

"Huh?" he replied eloquently. He felt at his face, quickly finding the offending paper and pulling it off. "Oh," he said, rubbing the dried drool of his cheek. He shook his head in attempt to get rid of the drowsiness.

"You didn't get a lot of sleep, did you Kurosaki?" Ishida remarked. It was basically his way of asking 'are you doing okay, Ichigo?'.

"No," he replied while in the middle of a giant yawn, "had too much on my mind." Seeing that his friends were already set to go, Ichigo hastily began to gather his books and pens, messily stuffing everything into his bag.

"I wonder how Jaegerjaquez-san is doing," Orihime spoke up. "He didn't seem to be very happy about having to stay with mister Urahara."

"I'm sure Tessai has plenty of ways to keep him busy," Ichigo chuckled. Then he cringed as he remembered the little mouse-hunting adventure from yesterday. There was never going to be any mention of that again, ever.

"I still can't believe you actually let him into your house," Uryu admonished him. "Who knows what could have happened if something had put him in the wrong mood. From what I've heard, he's not exactly stable, even by Espada standards." Since Uryu had been among the people who had fought Szayelaporro, who had been the looniest of the Espada by a huge margin if even half of what Uryu had told him was true, Ichigo could understand him being a bit high-strung over the situation with Grimmjow.

Ichigo heaved his school bag over his shoulder. "First of all, Yuzu's the one who let him in. I tried to stop her, but it was already too late. Besides, everything turned out fine, didn't it?" he waved Uryu's concerns away. His lightheartedness over the situation only served to agitate Uryu even more.

"Could you please take this seriously, Kurosaki?" he said between clenched teeth. There were still some people in the room, and Uryu would rather not have anyone overhearing their conversation. "Letting what's basically a dangerous sociopath into your house is no trivial matter! Don't you have any concern for the rest of your family?" Okay, now that was crossing the line.

"Uryu," Ichigo spoke heavily. Orihime and Chad visibly stiffened. A group of girls that had been chatting turned their heads to look at him. "Do you honestly believe I would willingly endanger my sisters?" He shot the Quincy a cold look. "If I, or my dad for that matter, had noticed even the slightest indication that Grimmjow meant to hurt any of us, I guarantee you he wouldn't be breathing right now." His expression was dead serious. None of them doubted that Ichigo would have killed Grimmjow without any hesitation if he had tried doing any harm to his sisters. He was incredibly protective of those two.

Uryu had the decency to look somewhat embarrassed, at least. "You- you're right. I apologize, Kurosaki. I went too far. But still," he continued, straightening his back. "I stand by what I said before. You have got to take this more seriously. If you truly believe the Espada doesn't pose a threat, I'll trust your judgment. Just don't forget that you're dealing with a Hollow here, not a human, despite what he may look like."

"Trust me, I haven't," Ichigo replied darkly, clearly remembering the bloodlust Grimmjow had displayed yesterday when Takahashi's name was mentioned. "Alright then, ready to go?" he asked the others. Receiving three affirmatives from his friends, Ichigo set off toward Urahara.

* * *

><p>"So why exactly are coming with us again, Ishida?" Ichigo asked. They were already nearing their destination, so it was a little to bring this up now. "You hate Soul Reapers, don't you? Why would you wanna help fight Takahashi?"<p>

Uryu pushed his glasses back up his nose before answering. "Don't get me wrong, Kurosaki. I couldn't care less if that man single-handedly burnt the entire Seireitei to the ground. That's not my problem. However, if he were to show up here in the human world, then it _would_ be my problem. And I'd like to be somewhat prepared in case that were to happen."

Ichigo nodded, understanding the logic behind his words. Karakura was after all a very important location to spiritual beings. It was certainly possible that Takahashi would have reason to come here. And if he did, Ichigo seriously doubted the Afro Guy - he seemed to be incapable of remembering that man's name - would be able to stop him by himself.

When the group walked up to the shop, Jinta was already outside, sweeping away as usual. "Oh, it's you guys!" he called out to them, seeming happy to have an excuse to stop working. He carelessly dropped his broom and walked up to the approaching group. "I'm afraid the boss-man's a little busy right now."

"Did something come up?" Uryu inquired.

"They're looking for miss Yoruichi. She went to Hueco Mundo yesterday to find out what that Takahashi guy was doing, but they lost contact with her about two hours after she left. Boss already opened the Garganta five times, but she missed it each time." Jinta was trying to make it sound like none of it really concerned him, but it was obvious he was at least a little worried.

The news instantly put the group on alert. "She's been in Hueco Mundo all that time?" Ichigo worriedly exclaimed. "Why the hell didn't Hat-and-clogs go after her?" he added heatedly, not understanding what the shopkeeper was thinking. Had he still had his powers, he would have already stormed inside, demanding Urahara send him to Hueco Mundo immediately.

Jinta huffed. "Not too bright, are ya?" he asked mockingly.

With great effort, Ichigo managed to hold back his angry retort.

"Have you already forgotten just how big a place Hueco Mundo is? You can't just storm in there hoping you'll happen to run across miss Yoruichi! That's a surefire way to get ambushed."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Orihime interrupted Jinta.

Jinta looked up at her. His gaze lingered just south of her face for a bit. A mild blush appeared on his cheeks; in spite of all the attitude he put up, he still couldn't handle talking to a pretty girl very well. Especially one with Orihime's 'assets'. "Y-yeah, maybe. Come on in. They're down at the lab." He lead the group inside the shop. Instead of opening up the hidden panel that led to the training room, he took them further inside.

"I didn't know mister Urahara had a lab here." Chad spoke up for the first time in quite a while. The teen still preferred to remain silent most of the time, only vocalizing his thoughts when he deemed it necessary. It was a good thing he had such an imposing figure. It would have been really easy to forget he was there otherwise.

"Hmm?" Jinta turned to the much taller teen. "Oh yeah, that's because he only built it two weeks ago. He managed to guilt trip Soul Society into giving him the money he needed," the boy casually stated. Everyone present sweatdropped. They stopped at a door that Ichigo remembered leading to a hall closet. When he opened it though, a large, stone stairway that lead down into the earth greeted them. Some wall lights were placed every ten or so steps, allowing them to see, but the overall appearance was still rather unappealing. "Down there," Jinta gestured with his thumb.

"Thank you for showing us the way, Jinta-kun!" Orihime happily thanked him and headed down the stairs without a second thought, not seeming to find any of this strange whatsoever. The three male members of the group glanced at each other wearily. None of them really felt like going down those stairs. For all they knew, they led straight down into some underground dungeon, or even Hell itself. After everything they had been through with Urahara, they didn't consider anything outside the realm of possibility where that man was involved. Unfortunately, it wasn't like they had much of a choice. They couldn't let Orihime go down there by herself. Ichigo sighed wearily and went down after her. Chad and Uryu were quick to follow behind. Jinta shut the door behind them with a loud click that echoed ominously through the narrow space.

"How far down does this go?" Ichigo complained out loud.

"It's okay! I can already see the end! There's a big door!" Orihime's voice echoed from somewhere far below them. They sped up their pace in order to catch up to her. The stairway was surprisingly long. They had to take a few turns as they went further down, so by the time they reached the end, they had effectively run in one big circle. They were about twenty meters lower than their starting point, though.

At the end of the stairway was a set of reinforced double doors. They were made of a metal that looked quite similar to steel, but Ichigo couldn't identify it with absolute certainty. The massive doors seemed to be at least a couple inches thick. Numerous protective wards and sigils littered the otherwise smooth surface of the door. It didn't take a genius to figure out that this was Tessai's handiwork. Knowing Urahara, he had built this place to be all but impossible for any intruders to get into. Ichigo tried banging his fist against the door to let Urahara know they were there, but he couldn't even make contact with the metal: his hand was deflected by an invisible barrier just before it could reach the door. It seemed to have had some effect, though: grinding noises began to reverberate from within the door itself as some internal mechanism was activated. With one loud, final click it became silent again. They waited expectantly.

Ichigo looked at his friends when nothing seemed to happen, unsure of what to do next. "Perhaps there's a microphone here somewhere, something we can use to contact Urahara," Ishida spoke up, always quick to come up with ideas. He started looking around, running his hands along the walls in the hope of finding some hidden device. "Yeah, good idea," Ichigo agreed, starting to search the other wall.

"I'll just run back upstairs and ask Jinta-kun to help us out," Orihime offered. She already had one foot on the stairs when Chad spoke up again. "Um, guys?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at him. "Door's open." He simply pushed and the door effortlessly swung wide open.

Ishida coughed, trying to hide his embarrassment. "Or, that works too, I suppose." They all sheepishly followed Chad inside. The door closed behind them once everyone had entered the laboratory, the same grinding noises from before indicating it was being locked again.

The space before them was a pristine white. It had a high ceiling, and was easily the size of half a football field. Large pieces of sophisticated-looking equipment were placed all around the room. A few Ichigo could recognize, like the MRI-scanner standing in the corner, but he hadn't the slightest clue as to what many of the others could have possibly been used for.

"How the hell did Hat-and-clogs build this without anyone finding out?" Ichigo wondered aloud.

"Oh, I have my ways." The group turned in the direction the voice had come from. The shopkeeper was bent over a console, furiously typing away at the keyboard. They walked over to Urahara, studying the various pieces of equipment they passed. There were even a few working stations similar to those at the school's lab, but on a much grander scale. The chemicals that they held also didn't look like anything you'd ever find inside of a school building. There was one flask that held a burning, dark blue liquid- even though the flask appeared airtight and therefore no oxygen should haven been able to get in. The largest, most impressive piece of machinery was placed against the back wall. It took up nearly the entirety of said wall, and consisted of many series of interconnecting pipelines that led to and from four square towers that seemed to house a lot of electronics, if the buzzing sound they gave off was any indication. Flanked by two of the towers on each side, and also connected to the pipelines, was a large, circular, black structure. It was pretty much the only thing in the room that wasn't white, and Ichigo couldn't even hazard a guess as to what material it was made of. Inside of the circle formed by the unknown material was an open Garganta.

Now wasn't the time to be mesmerized by the interior, however. "We heard about miss Yoruichi," Orihime spoke up as they approached the shopkeeper. "Is there anything we can do to help?"

Urahara looked up at her. Ichigo noticed right away that he had heavy, dark circles under his eyes and that he hadn't even had a chance to shave yet. His eyes were bloodshot, and he seemed seriously out of sorts. Ichigo had always thought of Urahara as the one person that could remain calm under just about any circumstances. Clearly that didn't hold true when one of his oldest friends was in a potentially life-threatening situation.

_Or maybe, it's already too late... _a voice in the back of Ichigo's mind whispered. Ichigo cleared his head of those thoughts. He couldn't think like that right now, not while there was still a good chance Yoruichi was perfectly alright. For all they knew, she had just been hiding somewhere until the coast was clear, and had purposely disabled communications so that she wouldn't accidentally give her position away. _Yeah, that's a perfectly good explanation, _Ichigo thought, and convinced himself that everything would turn out fine.

The shopkeeper paused for just a second as he thought it over. "Alright, why not." He immediately went back to his computer and opened up some new windows on the screen. "I'm adjusting the Garganta to convert your bodies into Reishi when you enter." Some sparks jumped between the edge of the Garganta and the black circle around it as he said so. "Sado-san and Ishida-san?" he addressed the two.

"I'll go," Chad affirmed right away. Uryuu looked pensive, remaining silent for a moment. "I'm not supposed to affiliate myself with Soul Reapers anymore," he started hesitantly. "But then again, since you're not part of the Gotei, I suppose it would be alright. I'll go too."

Urahara flashed them a smile. "I'm grateful, Ishida-san, Sado-san. As for you, Inoue-san-"

"I know. I'll stay here with Ichigo," she said unfazed. She already knew she would only make things more difficult for the others if she came along. Since she was pretty much useless in a fight, it would only force them to divide their attention between fighting the enemy and protecting her. Plus, they couldn't risk Orihime getting injured, as she was their best healer and they might need her abilities later.

Ichigo on the other hand, was a bit perturbed. Now that he was no longer a Shinigami, there was nothing he could do to help out. He clenched his fists as he watched Uryu and Chad walk over to the portal. He wouldn't be able to protect them. If something happened to either of them, he'd never forgive himself.

Urahara threw them both a small communications device. "I don't know if these will do you much good. We suddenly lost contact with Yoruichi too last night," he spoke while they put the device over their ears. "Meet up with Tessai when you get there. He's placing scanning devices over a large area. He'll tell you what to do once you get there. He's suppressing his Reiatsu though, so I'll guide you to him. Any questions?" Receiving two negative responses, Urahara went back to his console. "Good luck, then."

Both teens nodded, and jumped into the portal. Ichigo watched as they were swallowed by the black void. Now, they waited.

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes later, Ichigo's nerves were pretty much shot. Orihime had tried her best to distract him with small talk, but it had been to no avail. All he could think about was if Chad and Uryu were safe, and if Yoruichi was even still alive.<p>

He hated it. He hated it so freaking much to be stuck here while his friends were out there, risking their lives in what was pretty much the most dangerous place in the universe. Urahara was no help either. He was just as stressed out as Ichigo was, if not more. He contacted one of the people in Hueco Mundo every few minutes, and from the snippets of conversation Ichigo could pick up, he could tell that so far nothing really big had happened. Just some minor skirmishes with Adjuchas-class Hollows. They had already conducted a quick scan of Las Noches' interior, hoping to find Yoruichi or Nel there, but the fortress was completely abandoned from what they could see. That last tidbit of news had certainly contributed to Ichigo's current mental state. Grimmjow had said that Las Noches was supposed to be a safe haven for the Arrancar now. If no one was there, then it could only mean something bad had happened there. And Takahashi had most likely been involved.

"Why don't you two go upstairs for a while?" Urahara's voice broke the tense silence. He turned to look at them. "There's no point in sitting around here, getting all wound up for no reason."

Ichigo was about to make a heated retort, but Orihime spoke up before he could. She was the only person in the room that had managed to keep her cool. "I believe it would be best if we stayed here. If they come back and anyone's injured, I should be here to heal them." She spoke with a steady voice, which was more than Ichigo was currently capable of.

"Don't worry. I'll let you know when they're on their way back here. Or if anything unexpected happens." Sensing they would continue to protest, Urahara kept on talking. "There's also something I'd like you two to look at. With captain Ukitake's help, I was able to obtain quite a bit of information on Takahashi. I didn't have time to go over everything yet, but the material is all there. I'm sure there's plenty we can learn from it."

Ichigo still wasn't convinced, but Orihime realized Urahara was right. They were just wasting time and gradually wearing themselves down by staying here. "Alright," she said as she stood up.

"But-" Ichigo wanted to protest, but he was interrupted by Orihime. "We should at least go and eat something, Kurosaki-kun. If you really want to come back here that badly, we'll just bring the information mister Urahara mentioned back with us when we're done and look at it here. Alright?"

Ichigo sighed. He couldn't argue with that. Urahara seemed to be agreeing with Orihime's compromise as well. "I left the files in the spare room, the one Jaegerjaquez-san is currently in." When he saw their surprised looks, he continued: "He seemed very interested to learn more about Takahashi. Maybe you should ask him if he managed to discover something useful."

"Alright. We'll get going then." Ichigo started heading toward the exit. He attempted to push open the massive doors, forgetting they had been locked tight automatically once they had entered. He was just about to ask Urahara to let them out, when the grinding noise from the gate's internal mechanism reached his ears. "Urahara? Did you do that?" he asked, slightly confused.

"No," the shopkeeper replied, "Tessai designed it to respond to your Spiritual signatures. You can all enter and leave any time you want."

Ichigo and Orihime looked at each other, a bit surprised that Urahara would trust them to the extent of allowing them free access to his lab. It was rather uncharacteristic for the usually so secretive shopkeeper. It was probably just for convenience' sake, though. "If anything happens, anything at all, let us know." When the shopkeeper nodded, Ichigo finally relented and pushed the massive doors open.

Four flights of stairs later, they were back above ground. Light flowed into the hallway through one of the windows. Ichigo had almost forgotten it was still daytime, seeing as there was no way for natural light to get down to the laboratory.

"It feels good to be out of there, huh, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked while she stretched.

"Yeah, I guess," he responded a bit unenthusiastically.

"Why don't you go ahead and get started on those files mister Urahara mentioned? I'll try and find us something to eat." Alarm bells went off inside Ichigo's mind.

He wanted to protest, but Orihime had already taken off in search of 'food'. He sighed, figuring it wasn't worth the effort to try and convince her to switch jobs with him. He set off toward Grimmjow's room by himself. He felt a little anxious about seeing the Espada again. Yesterday may have gone surprisingly well, but this was Grimmjow he was dealing with: for all he know the Espada had already thought up a hundred different ways to kill everyone in the building and make a break for Hueco Mundo in the time he hadn't seen him. Uryu had been right about Grimmjow, although he hated to admit it. It was still a Hollow they were dealing with here, he just happened to be one that came in a human package.

He stopped in front of the sliding door leading to Grimmjow's room, taking a deep breath in order to steel himself. _Here goes nothing,_ he thought to himself, knocked softly on the door's wooden frame, and entered the room.

He was met by piercing blue eyes right away. "Kurosaki? The hell are you doing in here?" Grimmjow asked rather rudely. He was sitting cross-legged on his bed, and had a large binder laying in his lap. Pictures and documents were spread out on the floor all around him.

"I came to look at..." he noticed one of the pictures on the floor was of a certain brown-haired Shinigami. "Those, actually," he said, pointing to the binder in Grimmjow's lap.

"Oh," Grimmjow said with obvious annoyance. He continued looking through the files, not even sparing Ichigo another glance.

Ichigo clenched his teeth. He didn't take kindly to being ignored like that. He was already in a foul enough mood. What he certainly didn't need right now was that blue-haired prick driving him up the wall even further. He resolutely walked over to the futon and sat down right next to Grimmjow, being extra careful not to step on anything as he went. He didn't say another word as he picked up the closest documents and started to read.

"Kurosaki."

He looked at Grimmjow, face completely neutral. "Yes?"

"You're on my bed." Grimmjow didn't look very happy about that. Good.

"And?" he asked, expression still the epitome of calm.

"Get off." Grimmjow waited expectantly for Ichigo to comply.

The teen stayed still for a moment, as if he was considering it. "No," he eventually said, and focused his attention back on the papers in his hands. He could swear he had seen Grimmjow's eye twitch.

"And why not, exactly?" Grimmjow asked, voice sounding strained with barely suppressed rage.

"Don't want to sit on the floor," Ichigo replied absently. He had found something rather interesting. He didn't see the nasty look Grimmjow was sending him, nor how the man's fists were clenched with anger. He had picked up a picture that showed a group of twenty-something Shinigami. They were divided into two rows, with the people in the front row sitting down so that the ones in the back were visible too. A captain and his lieutenant stood a little to the left of the others, distinguishable from the rest of the group by their white haori and lieutenant's badge.

Ichigo guessed them to be the seated members of squad six, judging from the fact only about two dozen Shinigami were pictured. And it wasn't exactly hard to recognize the sixth division's barracks behind them. Plus, their captain was so obviously a member of the Kuchiki family, it was a dead giveaway really. The man wearing the white haori had long, gray hair that neatly fell down his back and a perfectly-kept mustache. He had the exact same, stern look in his eyes as Byakuya did and was even wearing a similar - if not the very same - scarf as him. Standing next to him was a black-haired vice-captain that looked almost identical to Byakuya. If he hadn't been smiling, something Ichigo couldn't even imagine Byakuya doing, Ichigo would have probably thought it was him. Now that he thought about it, these two were most likely Byakuya's father and grandfather. Interesting as that was, what had really caught his attention in the first place was the man sitting on the outer right of the front row.

"That's Takahashi!" He could easily recognize him since he looked pretty much the same back then as he did now. The only difference was that his hair wasn't as long in the picture. He turned the photo around, looking at the date on the back. "This is from 157 years ago," he muttered to himself.

Grimmjow looked over his shoulder, curious as to what had captured Ichigo's attention.

Ichigo turned the picture around again. He started counting the Shinigami. "Seventh, no, Eighth Seat," he murmured.

"What is it?" Grimmjow asked.

Ichigo jerked a little upon realizing how close the Espada was. He had been so engrossed in his findings he hadn't even noticed. "It's just a little odd, is all. Urahara said he was captain of the third division. So what's he doing here as Eighth Seat of the sixth?" He handed the picture to Grimmjow after giving it one final glance. "If Urahara's theory is right, he should have gained most of his power while he was still alive," He explained while Grimmjow studied the photo. "But if he's in the Gotei, he should have already been dead. Well, his body should have been... You know what I mean," he finished lamely. "Anyway, from what I've seen, anything below Third Seat is usually cannon fodder when compared to a captain."

Grimmjow put the picture back down, apparently done looking at it. "So that's what he looks like," Grimmjow said with a small, predatory grin. Now that he knew what Takahashi looked like in human form, he had a target he could hunt down. He turned to look at Ichigo. "About what you were saying; he's probably just trying to keep a low profile. I mean, think about it. He has Hollow powers doesn't he? And I know Soul Society's not particularly fond of people like that. I'd lay low too if I were him."

Ichigo considered it. Grimmjow certainly made a good point. Before he could comment however, Orihime entered the room, carrying a tray with five plastic cups of instant noodles. "Dinner's ready!" She exclaimed happily. Ichigo felt a wave of relief wash over him the moment he saw the instant noodles. There was simply no way she could have messed those up. Right?

"I thought you might have been hungry, so I brought some for you too, Jaegerjaquez-san," she said politely as she placed the tray on the ground, in one of the few places there were no papers scattered about. "I wasn't sure which flavor you'd like, so I just picked whatever I could find." Ichigo noticed two cups with curry flavor, two miso and a single plain one. He opted for the plain noodles. He wasn't very hungry, and he doubted he would be able to keep anything with too much spices down. He was still pretty stressed out.

Orihime and Grimmjow each took a cup from the plate, with the latter studying the contents suspiciously. He checked the noodles for poisonous substances by smelling it, just like he'd done with his food last night. "It looks kinda like spaghetti," he murmured more to himself than to the other people in the room. "Really gross, soggy spaghetti."

Ichigo snorted. "It's supposed to look like that, don't worry. Try tasting it!" he encouraged Grimmjow.

Grimmjow inspected the contents of his cup one last time before picking up a fork. Under the expectant gazes of both Ichigo and Orihime, he carefully twirled some noodles around his fork, just like how Ichigo had taught him. He chewed slowly, facial expression not betraying whether he liked it or not. He swallowed and licked his lips. "'s not bad," he eventually decided, and started wolfing down the rest like he was a starving man, slurping and loudly smacking his mouth with no manners whatsoever.

Ichigo rolled his eyes at the display and turned back to Orihime, updating her on what he and Grimmjow had discovered in the files Urahara had provided.

"Well, it's certainly a possibility that he wanted to hide his Hollow-powers," she agreed with Grimmjow's theory. She gathered up some of the papers scattered at her knees and quickly skimmed through them. "But we won't get anywhere if everything is spread around like this. We should sort them chronologically."

Ichigo shot a glare at Grimmjow, who had just started working on his second cup. "What?" he asked, sucking a stray noodle into his mouth. "It was already a big mess when the shopkeeper gave me that binder. I doubt I could have made it any worse."

Ignoring Grimmjow, he started helping Orihime sort through everything. He used the picture of the old Squad 6 as a starting point, and placed everything that came before or after the date on the picture either to the left or right of it respectively.

They quickly came to the conclusion that not much was being added on the left side. So far, the only thing that had been placed on the 'before' side was a pretty standard-looking form that stated Takahashi had joined Squad 6. It was dated about a year earlier than the picture.

"It's strange that we can't find anything on him before that date," Orihime mused once they had finished sorting everything. "It's like he just appeared out of nowhere one day and was accepted into squad 6 right away." She started listing the possible scenarios. "If he had joined the normal way, there should be records of him having been to the Soul Reaper Academy. From what we know about him that seems pretty unlikely, so I think we can cross that option off the list. Another possibility is that someone who was already a member of the division wanted him to join, but then there should at least be a letter of recommendation or something..." she trailed off.

It was pretty easy to forget, since she tended to act like a total klutz most of the time, but Orihime was still one of the smartest people he knew. She was great to have around at a time like this. Now Ichigo wasn't stupid by any means, but this really wasn't his area of expertise. "I don't know, Orihime. And I doubt we'll be able to figure it out with what we have here." He put down an old report about how Takahashi and a few members of his squad had taken down some Hollows in the human world. "Let's focus on something else for now."

She nodded in agreement and moved closer to the much larger 'After' side. "I think this is a good place to start," she said, holding up an old newspaper article. The large, flashy headline read 'Squad six member kills Captain of Squad three in honorable combat'. In the center of the article was a large, black-and-white picture of Takahashi and what was most likely the aforementioned captain battling it out, surrounded by over a hundred onlooking Shinigami. "I guess now we know how he went from sixth seat to captain so quickly."

Grimmjow suddenly laughed unexpectedly, drawing their attention. "Seriously?" he asked, putting down his third cup of instant ramen. "_That's_ how you become a Captain? By slaughtering the guy who came before you in front of hundreds of onlookers? And Shinigami have the nerve to call _us _barbarians." He scratched his chin. "Actually, that does sound like it could be fun..."

Orihime opened her mouth to say something, most likely to explain how that method was rarely ever used and a more humane approach was generally preferred, but she was interrupted by a beeping noise before she could speak. Ichigo recognized the tune as his ringtone for text messages. Fishing his cell phone out of his jeans' pocket, he took a quick look at the screen. The message was from Urahara, and there were only three words: 'They found her'.

His heart started working overtime. "They're on their way!" he hurriedly explained to Orihime as he got up from the floor. She instantly dropped the article she was holding and got up as well. They both bolted out of the room, not even sparing a very confused Grimmjow a second glance.

* * *

><p>A bit later than I'd hoped to get it up, but still within a somewhat reasonable timeframe I'd say.<p>

So I've noticed that this story has over 70 followers, yet only 35 reviews. With most of the stories on this site, it's actually the exact opposite. Now don't get me wrong, I'm really freaking happy that so many of you seem to be enjoying my writing, but I'd love to get some more feedback. The main reason I'm here to improve as a writer, so I really want to hear what you guys think. If you're not sure what to say in a review (I have this too! I want to leave a review but then I just sit there for 15 minutes thinking of what to say) just say something like 'I really enjoyed that part' or 'I believe this part could have been done better', anything's fine really. Hell, just say 'Hi! I like your story!' (or not). Offer suggestions, tell me if someone is too OOC, whatever. Just let me know your opinions, 'cause I'm dying to hear them. To the people who already reviewed: I love each and every one of you. You're all awesome, awesome people.

Also, on a semi-related note, SOMEONE accidentally stepped on my laptop yesterday, cracking the screen. As such, I had to type out the last few pages of this chapter with a giant black line running through the page. The good news is I already found a new screen on ebay, the bad news is that my laptop is one of the most idiotically designed pieces of equipment out there and I have to take apart pretty much everything just to get the screen out. Just felt like sharing that little tidbit with you all.

'Till next time!


	8. Suspense

**Chapter 8: Suspense**

Chad and Uryuu were dashing through the white desert as fast as their legs could carry them. While they had succeeded in their mission to find Yoruichi, there had been some complications. Right now there was another, rather urgent problem that they needed to worry about.

"Sado! Behind you!" Uryu yelled when he sensed Takahashi's incoming attack. Chad jumped upward just in time to avoid getting hit by a bright red comet the size of a bowling ball, but the force behind the explosion it caused sent him flying higher than he had intended to go. He had to do some rather impressive aerial acrobatics in order to regain his balance, but somehow he managed it, even while holding a mostly unresponsive Yoruichi in his arms.

He made it back to the ground safely and caught back up with Uryu, uttering a quick thank-you for the heads-up. While it would certainly make it easier for them to maneuver, staying in mid-air would also serve to make them a bigger target to a long-range fighter like Takahashi. Annoying as it was, they needed to stay down on the desert sand.

Facing backward while maintaining his speed, Uryu fired off a couple hundred arrows in the span of two seconds, all of them headed in their pursuers direction. This forced Takahashi to block the ones that would have otherwise hit him with a transparent barrier. While the attack hadn't done any damage, it had bought them some valuable seconds as Takahashi lagged behind a little.

It helped a lot that their pursuer was only able to use one of his arms due to the earlier fight he had partaken in; he had the other one in an improvised sling that appeared to be made out of fabric torn from his Soul Reaper uniform. Uryu remembered Ichigo saying that the man had gotten hit by a massive fireball - courtesy of Captain Yamamoto - during the fight in the Seireitei. The results of that attack were still clearly visible. Only the Vizard's hand stuck out of the sling, and if the rest of his arm looked the same, Uryu could certainly understand why he wasn't using it. That lump of flesh could hardly even be called a hand. The skin was a pale rosy color and appeared to have creases running all over it: unmistakably the result of a partially healed, nasty burn. There were no identifiable fingernails, and the injured hand appeared to be smaller the other one, as if it was only made up of bone with a thin layer of skin draped over it. Still, from what he'd been told, Uryu had expected it to look even worse than it already did. Then again, taking into account Takahashi's Hollow powers, he had probably started to regenerate it already.

However, even with just one functioning arm, they could not afford to underestimate Takahashi. They had already found that out the hard way when they had lost Tessai.

It had happened so fast. They had just found Yoruichi, hiding under some rubble that had once been a part of Las Noches. Tessai had contacted Urahara, confirming that they had located her. Then, all communication had suddenly been cut off, and the walls of a black box had risen up from the very ground Tessai was standing on. He could only yell at Uryu and Chad to start running before the box had sealed him in. Sharp protrusions had appeared all over the surface of the box right after that, making them fear the worst for the man inside.

"We're almost at the Garganta, miss Yoruichi," he heard Chad muttering quietly to the woman he was carrying. "Orihime is on stand-by at the lab, she'll take care of your injuries," he tried to encourage her. She didn't give any indication she'd heard him, just kept breathing heavily with her eyes closed and teeth clenched due to the pain she was in.

Takahashi wasn't the only injured one here. Yoruichi had also acquired quite the collection of nasty burn marks during her stay in Hueco Mundo. Angry red lines ran crisscross over her entire body, with some very painful-looking blisters here and there. She had covered the worst of her wounds with bandages, but she didn't have nearly enough on her to take care of all the injuries she had sustained. Chad couldn't help but feel bad that he was unwillingly causing her even more pain just by holding her. When they had found her she had already been injured, so Uryu couldn't be a hundred percent certain as to what had caused it. However, the electrically-imbued, freaking _invisible_ Kido webs that they had passed were a pretty safe bet in his opinion. Uryu could only hope that they wouldn't run into more of them on their way to the portal.

He took another look at their pursuer. They were nearing the Garganta, and Takahashi would be getting desperate now that it had become apparent he wouldn't be able to catch up.

Strangely enough, Takahashi wasn't even chasing them anymore. He was standing completely still, looking right at them. Perhaps he had given up and decided to let them go? Uryu mentally kicked himself for even considering that option. There was no way in hell that he would let them get away that easily; he was up to something, Uryu was sure of it. He stopped running and turned to face Takahashi.

Upon noticing that Uryu wasn't following him anymore, Chad come to a halt as well, not too far from his position. "Uryu, why are you-?"

"Don't stop!" Uryu barked. He didn't take his eyes off their pursuer. Even from this distance, he could see Takahashi sending a smirk in his direction. "Whatever you do, don't stop running. Keep going until you've made it back to Urahara's."

Chad grit his teeth. He wanted so badly to protest, say that he wasn't leaving him behind like this, but Chad knew he had no choice right now. He had to make sure Yoruichi made it back home. That was the task both Tessai, and now Uryu as well, had entrusted to him. "Make sure you come back," he told Uryu as he turned back around. Yoruichi let out a gasp, as if she wanted to protest, but the teen ignored her.

"Of course. I'm not planning on sacrificing myself, I'm not that stupid. Now go." He heard Chad take off, and focused his attention back on Takahashi.

"Staying behind to buy enough time for your friend to escape. How admirable," Takahashi commended him.

Uryu clicked his teeth in annoyance. "When did I ask for your opinion on the matter?" he snidely remarked. If Takahashi was going to waste time with small talk, Uryu would be taking full advantage of that. If he could keep him busy for just a little while longer, there was no doubt that Chad would be able to make it back safely.

"You didn't, I suppose," he answered stand-offishly. "I just thought that it might have been a good way to break the ice between us," he said, still smiling.

Uryu racked his brain to find a suitable response, preferably one that would distract Takahashi from chasing after Chad. Drawing out a conversation wasn't exactly his strong suit. He was usually the one who took advantage of the situation when his opponent was too focused on talking. "You wanted to 'break the ice'? After what you did, _now _you want to try and have a civilized conversation?" Uryu sneered at Takahashi. "You must be delusional."

Takahashi stopped smiling as a small frown appeared on his features. "That was rather harsh. I assume you're referring to what I did to the orange-haired Soul Reaper?" Uryu's silence was all the confirmation he needed. "I see. So he's your friend. I was wondering what a Quincy was doing helping out Soul Reapers. Now it makes sense."

Uryu's eye twitched. "Kurosaki, my friend?" Uyru readied his bow. "Please don't insult me like that." He had sensed Chad's Reiatsu reaching the Garganta's location and completely disappearing just a moment later. Now that Chad and Yoruichi were safe, all Uryu needed to do was get away from Takahashi as well.

His opponent just snorted in response, not looking the least bit intimidated. "If your _friend_ hadn't gotten involved, he wouldn't have gotten hurt. Simple as that. You, for that matter," he glared at Uryu, "should have just stayed out of this too."

All of a sudden Takahashi's Reiatsu crashed into Uryu like a tidal wave. He staggered backwards at least a full two meters just from the sheer force it possessed. Theoretically, if the air was being saturated with so much Reiryoku it should have been advantageous for a Quincy. In this situation though, there was simply far too much of it. Uryu was being completely overwhelmed.

_'This is insane!'_ he thought to himself, his entire body shaking like a leaf as he struggled to stay upright.

"Done already?" Takahashi spoke up in mocking tone. That annoying smirk had found it's way back onto his face.

Uryu was unable to even voice a retort. He sunk to his knees, having trouble catching his breath. Sweat was pouring down his face.

He put one of his hands on the ground in an attempt to steady himself. Never had he experienced anything like this. Kurotsuchi, Szayel... their Reiatsu couldn't even begin to compare. Not even the thick, heavy Reiatsu emitted by the second stage of Ulquiorra's Resurreccion had managed to overwhelm him like this. He could still move, but his mobility would be severely impaired as long as he was subject to such monstrous Reiatsu. In his current state, Uryu wouldn't even be able to slow Takahashi down.

Now Uryu understood how someone as experienced and well-versed in Kido as Tessai had gone down so quickly. If Takahashi hadn't wasted time by talking to him and unleashed the full force of his Reiatsu right from the start, he would have stood a decent chance of catching up to Chad.

Takahashi slowly began to walk toward him, wearing an unreadable expression. The harsh desert winds ruffled his tattered uniform and blew his long hair into his face, but he ignored all of that.

Mustering up all the strength he could in this situation, Uryu forced himself to stand upright and used Hirenkyaku to try and put some distance between himself and his adversary. He dashed toward a rather large piece of rock, hoping to use it as a form of cover. Conveniently for him, his immediate surroundings were littered with many more of these large stones. Together with the white sand and the tree-like formations of minerals that popped up here and there, the area looked like some sort of a giant Zen garden. If he could use his high-speed technique to quickly move from one rock to the next, he just might have a chance of leaving this place alive.

Upon reaching the first giant boulder, Uryu allowed himself to lean against its jagged, rough surface for just a moment in order to steady himself. Just as he was about to take off again, a familiar voice made him freeze involuntarily.

"Where do you think you're going?" Takahashi asked him calmly from atop the large rock Uryu had been leaning against not two seconds ago.

Resisting the urge to turn around and look, Uryu clenched his teeth and set off once again. He ran faster than he'd ever done before. Even as he weaved between the rock formations at breakneck speeds, he could sense his pursuer always just a few meters behind him. Now that Uryu had gotten somewhat used to the crushing Reiatsu, he found he could turn the disadvantages it offered into benefits by absorbing the readily available Reiryoku in the air and using it to power his Hirenkyaku. He thanked whatever gods were out there that Takahashi wasn't a speed demon like captain Kuchiki or Soi Fon.

Sensing a strange disturbance in the space directly ahead of him, Uryu made a sharp turn to the left, deviating from his intended route to the Garganta. It was a good thing he had been able to react so quickly; if he had kept going in that direction, he would have ran head-first into a translucent barrier placed there by the rogue Shinigami and probably cracked his skull open. Despite managing to evade the trap, he wasn't in the clear yet.

Thanks to his earlier experience with the cloaked Kido webs, Uryu knew right away what that strange, barely noticeable shimmering ahead of him meant. Fortunately, he had also found a way to remove the traps without too much difficulty.

He materialized his bow and let loose a salvo of arrows. The vast majority of them passed right on through, but only one of them needed to hit. Suddenly, the entire area was lit up by blue arcs of electricity that originated from a single point - namely where the arrow had made contact - and spread out from there like a spider's web, showing just how large the Kido web had been. It spanned a length of at least twenty meters, and was nearly twice as high as Uryu was tall. They had passed quite a few similar traps while searching for Yoruichi, but none of them compared to the sheer size of this one. It was like a wall, placed there to prevent anyone from going any further.

The wall of light disappeared just a quickly as it had come. By triggering the trap prematurely with an arrow, Uryu was able to move on unhindered.

That is, until his pursuer got tired of their little game of cat and mouse. Over the next couple of seconds, many things happened very fast. First came the explosions. Over half a dozen of the same red comets that had been used against Chad earlier on hit as many locations around Uryu, causing sand to fly everywhere and effectively blinding him. After that, thanks to the huge cloud of sand obscuring his senses, he tripped on something he couldn't see and got a mouth full of sand as he made a spectacular faceplant. And finally, there was the bone-crushing force of a tremendous Spiritual Pressure weighing down on him. The sand slowly settled down again as Uryu lay on the ground, completely paralyzed.

Now that Takahashi, the source of the crushing Reiatsu, was standing less than half a meter away from him, something as simple as moving had become a nearly unattainable feat. Clearly, Uryu had bitten off more then he could chew this time.

The man sighed deeply as he watched Uryu sprawled out on the desert sand. "Why is it that children keep getting in my way?" he asked, a hint of sadness in his voice. Uryu made a choking sound; it was all he could manage. The man standing in front of him slowly extended his arm, showing Uryu his open palm. Uryu sensed Reiryoku gathering in his hand as he began casting a spell.

This time, Uryu was completely, utterly _fucked_.

* * *

><p>"Get ready, you two!" Urahara anxiously called out to Ichigo and Orihime. "Sado and Yoruichi have just entered the Garganta!"<p>

They didn't need to be told twice. The pair immediately jumped out of their seats and took up position on both sides of the Garganta.

All this waiting and doing nothing had been seriously grinding on their nerves. Their only source of information right now was Urahara's monitor, which displayed the positions of everyone in Hueco Mundo by tracking their Reiatsu signatures. Direct communication with the search party had been cut off right after they had managed to find Yoruichi. It hadn't been hard to figure out why; a fifth marker had shown up on the screen, one with a much stronger reading than any of the others. It hadn't taken long before the little red dot representing Tessai had disappeared. From that point on, it had basically been a game of cat and mouse between the remaining parties. That had lasted until both Uryu's red dot and that of the group's pursuer stopped moving. They all knew what that meant.

Ichigo stared into the black void inside of the portal, waiting for the first two people that had made it back to appear. He refused to believe that Uryu and Tessai were dead. Uryu was probably still fighting Takahashi; all they knew for sure was that the two of them had gone outside of the scanning devices' range. As for Tessai, there were many things that could have happened. Admittedly, none of those things could have been good, but Urahara himself had been the one to say that Tessai's signature had disappeared suspiciously fast. If he had really been killed, it should have slowly weakened, before eventually disappearing.

Orihime already summoned her fairies in case they would be needed. The two she had called out slowly circled around her, waiting for their owner's next command.

Ichigo clenched his fists, so tightly that his nails nearly broke the skin of his palms. _I should have been there with them! _He was furious at himself. How could he be so goddamn useless at a time like this? Uryu and Tessai _had _to make it back. If they didn't, he'd never be able to forgive himself.

He started grinding his teeth. Not just himself, he'd never forgive Takahashi either. A murderous rage welled up inside of him as he thought about Uryu going through a similar experience as what had happened to him in Soul Society. _I'll kill him... _he thought darkly to himself. _I'll rip that bastard into pieces... _

"They're here!" Orihime suddenly called out. That snapped Ichigo out of his homicidal thoughts. He swallowed hard. He couldn't blame thoughts like that on his inner Hollow anymore.

This wasn't really the best time to worry about his mental state though. "Chad!" he called out when his best friend finally became visible in the distance. He was holding Yoruichi in his arms. That wasn't a good sign.

Chad increased his pace when he heard Ichigo calling out to him. With one big final leap, he jumped the last few meters and landed in between Orihime and Ichigo. "Orihime! Please, look after her!" He told her without missing a beat as he hurried over to one of the large working stations where he gently put Yoruichi down.

The girl instantly complied and had her fairies fly over to the injured woman. "Soten Kisshun!" she called out before she even got there, already forming the familiar oval-shaped bubble around Yoruichi's body.

Ichigo followed her as she ran to the woman's side, performing a visual check-up to see just how badly she was hurt. The angry red lines that covered her entire body instantly captured his attention. "Those are electrical burns," he muttered to himself. Occasionally assisting in his father's clinic, he had seen this type of burn quite a few times. From the lines ran across her body, it was like she had been wrapped from head to toe in live, exposed electrical wiring. While most likely incredibly painful, Yoruichi's burns weren't deadly. Most were first- or second-degree burns, but at certain points, especially where two lines intersected, her skin was already charred black, indicating a third-degree burn. It certainly wasn't pretty to look at, but at least her internal organs had not been affected.

Seeing how much Yoruichi was hurting, Orihime tried her hardest to undo the damage quickly. "It's alright, miss Yoruichi!" she encouraged her. "The pain will go away soon!"

Yoruichi turned her head to look at the girl. "Good," she managed to say while breathing heavily. "Thank you, Orihime."

Urahara constantly switched his gaze from the monitor to Yoruichi and back again. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't leave his post. Not until the others were safe as well.

"Chad," Ichigo started, "What happened to- hey! What are you doing?!" At Ichigo's yelling, everyone turned to look at Chad, who was running back toward the Garganta. "Urahara! Stop him!"

Urahara didn't need to be told. He slammed his fist down on the big red 'STOP' button on his control panel, causing the machine keeping the Garganta open to shut down instantly. Without the device acting to stabilize it, the portal was unable to maintain its integrity. The edge of the Garganta deformed as the portal shrunk and collapsed in on itself just a few seconds later, stopping Chad in his tracks.

"I have to go back!" he yelled at them. "Uryu's still fighting that guy!"

"No," Urahara stated with finality. He had already begun to restart the system. Without an open Garganta, he couldn't connect to the scanning devices in Hueco Mundo. "Not without a plan. If you went by yourself, you would just be the next one we'd lose contact with."

"I'm not leaving him behind!" Chad roared furiously, making Orihime flinch. "Open the portal, NOW!" It was a scary thing, seeing someone who was usually so gentle get so angry.

"I already am," the scientist stated calmly. "But you won't be going through it alone." As he talked, electrical arcs appeared within the large black ring that had contained the portal. "Kurosaki-san, come over here please."

Ichigo did as he was asked and went to stand next to Urahara. "I'm going to show you how to use the controls." Ichigo swallowed. There was no way in hell he could learn to use something so complicated that quickly.

"You already know how to interpret the map," Urahara went on. "Most likely, you won't need to do much more than tell us where to go. But just in case the portal malfunctions, I'll show you how to reboot the system. Watch closely."

Ichigo tried to memorize everything Urahara said and did. The technical stuff wasn't his forte, but right now he was the only one who could do it.

Meanwhile, the arcs in the portal all gathered into one horizontal blue line. "Then, all you have to do is push this button," Urahara continued. The blue line briefly bulged in the center, before splitting apart, revealing a black void inside. "And that's all there is to it," the man finished. There were some more sparks flying around while the Garganta grew larger. It stopped expanding when it reached the same size it had before. The entire process had taken less than two minutes.

"Now then, any questions?" Urahara asked him while already getting up and grabbing his cane. "No. I've got it." Ichigo mentally repeated everything Urahara had shown him. "Good, then we'll-"

"Wait!" Ichigo stopped him. "Look at the map, someone's there!" Urahara joined him at the console again. Indeed, another red dot had appeared. Its marker read 'UNKNOWN'.

Whoever it was, they were _fast._ The new arrival was heading straight for Tessai's last known location. "What the..." Urahara muttered. As Ichigo had expected, the dot stopped right where they had lost Tessai. After five very suspenseful seconds...

"He's back!" Another red dot popped up directly beside their unknown helper. A message in the bottom-right corner of the screen appeared: 'Reiatsu signature detected - Tessai Tsukabishi'.

Chad joined them behind the monitor. "Tessai-san's back?" He asked disbelievingly. They watched as both red dots started moving again after a while, heading in the general direction Uryu and Takahashi had ran off to.

Urahara looked indecisive. Eventually, he spoke up again. "Whoever that was, they seem to be on our side," he concluded, turning to face Chad. "Sado-san. You go on ahead. Try to join up with Tessai before we lose track of him again. I'll stay here for now."

Chad gave the man a curt nod before dashing straight to the portal and jumping in again without a second's hesitation.

"Let's hope this goes well," Urahara muttered. Ichigo nodded in agreement.

It took Chad about one minute to reach the other side of the portal. From where he stood he was outside of the range of Takahashi's Reiatsu, so they were still able to communicate for now. Ichigo fetched a second chair from elsewhere in the lab so he could sit down next to Urahara and keep an eye on the map of Hueco Mundo. Chad's marker moved according to Urahara's directions, heading along a path that would eventually intersect with that of Tessai and his mysterious rescuer.

"You're about to reach the edge the edge of the map, Sado-san," Urahara spoke into his headset after a while. "Good luck." The red dot reached the edge of the map and promptly disappeared. 'Signal lost: Sado Yasutora' appeared on the monitor. "And now," Urahara sighed, "we wait."

"Again," Ichigo added quietly. He was getting very tempted to just say 'screw it' and go to Hueco Mundo himself, powers or no. Hearing talking behind him, he turned around in his seat to see what was happening.

Orihime was helping Yoruichi to sit upright, asking if it still hurt anywhere else as she did so. The orange bubble had disappeared, so Ichigo assumed she had finished healing her. "How are you feeling, Yoruichi-san?" he asked as both she and Orihime came over to the two men.

"Much better now, thanks to Orihime," she muttered, sounding tired. Giving her a quick once-over, Ichigo saw that where there had been nasty burns before, there was now only smooth, unmarred skin.

Urahara smiled at her. "I'm really glad you're alright. You... you really had me worried there for a minute," he admitted awkwardly.

She smirked at her longtime friend. "Please. Getting all worried about me like that," she started teasing him. "There's a reason they call me the Goddess of Flash, you know? Even with those wounds, I was still running laps around that guy," she boasted haughtily. "Until the adrenaline wore off, at least..." she added almost inaudibly.

Urahara grinned a bit sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. "I know, I know. I just figured you could have used a little extra help."

Yoruichi put a hand on Urahara's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "Well, in that case I suppose I should be thanking you all." She turned to look at the monitor, which still wasn't displaying any red dots. "Now let's just hope the others make it back, too..."

They fell quiet and continued to look at the map displayed on screen. Ever heard of the saying, 'a watched kettle never boils'? It certainly applied here. It wasn't until a full five minutes later, when Ichigo finally had to look away because his eyes started to hurt, that there was a new development.

Out of the blue, no less than five Reiatsu signatures popped up all at once, on the southern edge of the map. The system had trouble keeping up with identifying them all. A new message appeared on-screen: 'Multiple Reiatsu signatures detected. Identifying...'.

Everyone present held their breath as the names started coming in, one after the other.

'Identified: Tessai Tsukabishi, Uryu Ishida, Sado Yasutora...'

"It's them!" Orihime exclaimed, holding her hands up to her face. "Yeah," Ichigo affirmed, nervousness pooling in his stomach. "Which means the other two are..."

'...UNKNOWN SIGNATURE, Katsumi Takahashi.' That last one confirmed Ichigo's fears. He cursed loudly, Yoruichi reacting similarly. At least the other four had a lead on him. He was capable of attacking at long range though, so now they just needed to make it to the portal without getting hit by his attacks...

"Urahara-san, what will we do if he follows them into the Garganta?" Orihime asked urgently. "We'll improvise," came his not-so-reassuring reply. "In fact, call out your fairies now. As soon as everyone's through, block the portal's exit!"

Orihime nodded and ran off. "I'll back her up with Kido!" Yoruichi said as she joined Orihime in front of the Garganta.

Quickly glancing at the display again, Ichigo saw the first four red dots disappear from the map as soon as they reached their side of the portal. "They made it to the Garganta!" He called out to the two women, who started to prepare their techniques. Ichigo could see Takahashi's marker briefly halting right in front of the portal, most likely held back by the barrier set up around it, but it didn't stop him for very long. "He's coming!"

Three of Orihime's fairies began circling her as she called out each of their names; doing so made her technique stronger than when she simply used it immediately. Yoruichi meanwhile, was quickly rambling off a rather long incantation Ichigo failed to recognize. Whatever it was, it was probably high-level judging from the length. He jumped up from his seat when he noticed four figures coming into focus within the Garganta. He was getting goosebumps, but it wasn't caused by the stress. This was due to Reiatsu. Even if he could barely detect it anymore, you probably didn't even need to be spiritually aware to sense this. If the lab wasn't so far underground, he bet even random people on the street would have been able to notice it.

Urahara's hand shakily hovered over the emergency stop-button. Obviously, he could feel it too. This terrifying, bone-chilling sensation. It felt like the Grim Reaper itself was coming for them.

Four figures burst out of the portal at full speed, one of them screaming 'close it!' at the top of his lungs. Urahara immediately slammed his open palm down on the 'stop' button, at the same time that Orihime and Yoruichi used Santen Kesshun and Bakudo 81: Danku respectively. Two overlapping barriers instantly appeared to block the exit of the portal; it would stay open for about three more seconds before collapsing in on itself now that the power had been cut. Ichigo could only stare wide-eyed at what happened next.

_Three... _Four bodies landed roughly on the floor in one big heap. A soul-shaking roar emerged from within the Garganta's black depths.

_Two... _A massive, bone-white fist slammed into the two overlapping barriers, almost completely shattering Orihime's triangular shield as it made contact and putting some major cracks in Yoruichi's Danku.

_One... _The fist was pulled back by a large humanoid Hollow. The mouth of its mask opened, and another terrifying roar resounded throughout the room. Only a purple glow was visible within the mask's eye holes, but Ichigo felt like the man behind said mask was staring right at him. Getting ready to strike again, the monster drew back his fist.

_Zero_. The low hum of the four towers flanking the machine abruptly stopped and the portal snapped shut just as Takahashi began his second punch, cutting off the Reiatsu instantly.

Ichigo managed to stay upright for all of two seconds, his entire body shaking like a leaf. Then his legs gave out from under him and he fell to his knees. He greedily sucked in air, having not even realized that he had been holding his breath. His shirt was sticking to his skin; it was quickly getting drenched with sweat. He didn't even know it was possible to sweat that much in such a short time.

Urahara finally snapped out of his daze as well, quickly asking Ichigo if he was alright and helping him get back on his feet. It seemed like everyone had been in a stupor after what just happened.

"You... you all made it back," Orihime stammered, staggering over to the people who were just beginning to pick themselves up off the floor. "Uryu... Chad... Thank goodness!" she choked out. She fell to her knees beside the two boys and hugged both of them at the same time. They looked at her, still a bit shaken. Uryu hugged her back a bit awkwardly, while Chad simply smiled. Orihime started crying and laughing at the same time, and it didn't look like she was gonna stop anytime soon.

Ichigo let out a sigh of relief. They had all made it back safely. Aside from some minor scratches here and there, as well as the fact that they were completely exhausted, both Uryu and Chad looked perfectly alright.

Tessai meanwhile, was a bit worse for wear. He had a nasty gash on the side his head, which was still bleeding, as well as some other wounds that Ichigo couldn't see, but had dyed his clothes red in several places. All in all, it could have been a lot worse. Now that he had confirmed his friends' safety, Ichigo finally directed his attention to the mysterious person still lying on the floor. She appeared to be female, judging by her long, greenish-blue hair that reached down to her slim waist. Tessai politely extended a hand to help her up, which she accepted.

Stunned into silence, both Ichigo and Orihime could do little more than stare at her with their jaws nearly on the floor.

The new arrival giggled pleasantly upon seeing the looks on their faces. She smiled happily at them. "It's good to see you again... Itsygo."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, a rather unusual phenomenon was occurring on the other side of Karakura town. A large traffic jam had formed on one of the town's main roads. The cause of said traffic jam was difficult to explain.<p>

Right in the middle of the road, about half a meter off the ground, there was this strange shimmering in the air, like those mirages that tend to appear when it's really hot outside. While this normally wouldn't be any cause for alarm, this one was a bit different. You see, occasionally, this loud thumping sound would emerge from it, as if someone was banging against a wall no-one else could see. Even stranger was the fact that some sort of force would be released from the mirage at the exact same time that you heard the thumping noise. This 'force', which behaved a lot like a shockwave, had caused the windows of several passing vehicles to shatter and forced drivers in both lanes to stop their vehicles, completely halting traffic.

People had started gathering on the sides of the road, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on. An ambulance had turned up in order to treat the people that had gotten hurt by the shards of glass flying around. Due to the road being completely blocked, it had been forced to drive along the sidewalk. Such a 'spectacle' had served to attract even more people, and some reporters were already starting to arrive, eager to broadcast the strange happenings live.

People were chatting excitedly among each other. Most of them had their cells phones out and were taking pictures or making videos of the mirage. Another loud 'thump' accompanied by a shockwave shook the crowd, eliciting some screams and causing the level of excitement to rise.

"Look at that!" An observant bystander screamed. "It's like there's cracks in the air!"

People started looking more closely and noticed that yes, there did appear to be cracks in the air! This message was eagerly repeated by the people watching, and many even started pushing and shoving in order to get closer to the barricades that had quickly been set up by the officials.

Said officials were currently scratching their heads, having no clue what was going on. All they could really do for the moment was hope that the phenomenon would go away by itself; hopefully sooner rather than later. Some Internet forums that were quick on the uptake had already started posting madly about the event, spawning various topics with sensational titles like _'Black hole in Karakura Town?!' _and '_Paranormal activity in Karakura, Japan – live video feed!'._

More screams erupted from the crowd as the most powerful shockwave so far knocked some people off their feet. The smarter ones were already beginning to place some distance in between themselves and the mysterious shimmering in the air. The vast majority though had to be ordered to back away by the police, who had finally decided to make themselves useful.

The next blast of force was even more violent, knocking over barricades and even pushing the cars closest to it back a little. This had everyone but the most stubborn members of the audience running away as fast as their legs could carry them. Their panicked screams could be heard all throughout the area.

The cracks that had appeared within the center of the mirage were spreading out, now covering about half the total width of the road. The police had decided to back up as well, not wanting to get hit by another, possibly even more powerful shockwave.

The cracks spread even further as the air itself seemed to be vibrating. You could literally _hear _it breaking.

The next, and final, shock was by far the worst of them all. Cars were flung around like they were toys and the onlookers that had refused to run away were smashed into buildings, with the more unlucky ones being thrown through store windows. In short, it was all-around chaos. The area looked like a bomb had gone off.

In their panicked state, barely anybody bothered to look back at the epicenter of the blast. It didn't really matter though. Most people wouldn't have seen anything anyway. However, if a spiritually aware person had looked at the center of the devastation just then, they would have seen a man there, down on his hands and knees and breathing heavily. The rift the man had created when breaking through the dimensional barrier was rapidly closing again behind him.

Slowly, he got up. Cradling his injured, mostly useless left arm, he started walking, curiously looking at the buildings surrounding him as he went. He saw people dressed in strange clothing running away as if their lives depended on it. It appeared he had unintentionally caused quite a disturbance. He had been more than a little panicked after all, getting trapped in-between dimensions like that, and had used brute force in an attempt to break free. Now he saw the consequences of his less-than-delicate approach to the situation.

Hearing the sound of someone crying nearby, he looked to his left to see a child lying on the ground. Feeling guilty, since it was most likely his fault that the child had been injured, he decided to take a look at what was troubling the young boy.

The child, who couldn't have been more than 11 years old, had his hands wrapped around his right leg. His hands were covered in blood, and more was freely flowing from between his fingers. Seeing a large, bloody shard of glass lying on the ground next to the boy, it didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened. He looked around to try and find the boy's parents, but the street was mostly deserted, save for a few men in blue uniforms in the distance. He guessed them to be this era's police force.

The man knelt at the boy's side, remaining completely undetected by him despite being so close. He gently placed his uninjured hand on top of the boy's. A sharp intake of breath from the child let him know that he had noticed. A green glow briefly appeared, and then the man let go again. He got back up and started walking once more. The child meanwhile, looked at his leg and was surprised to find his injury gone. He wiped the tears from his eyes as his sobs turned to sniffles, looking around in confusion as he tried to find who or what had touched his hand just now, and had made his leg better. Not seeing anything, the boy got off the ground and started running, most likely going straight back home.

Looking behind him, the man smiled. At least that boy was alright now. There were some others that needed medical attention, but they were already being taken care of by what he assumed to be medics. They seemed to have the situation under control, and he didn't feel like attracting any more unnecessary attention, so he decided to let them be.

He looked up, seeing an enormous building made mostly out of glass and steel, reaching up into the sky. The man jumped straight up into the air, climbing higher and higher before eventually landing on the tall building's roof. He walked over to the edge, and looked at the city sprawled out below him.

"This world has changed so much in just a century..." Katsumi muttered quietly to himself. His grey eyes scanned his surroundings. There were so many fascinating things he had never seen before. What grabbed his attention the most were the metal vehicles that seemed to be used for transporting people_. _He knew about automobiles, but these looked nothing like the ones he had been familiar with in life.

He breathed in deeply, enjoying the feeling of the setting sun's rays on his skin. "Looks like I have a lot of catching-up to do..."

* * *

><p><strong>Terms used:<strong> Hirenkyaku: The Quincy equivalent of a Flash Step.


	9. Back in Action

**Chapter 9: Back in action**

Suddenly, the underground lab didn't seem so spacious anymore. So many people were in there now that they had been forced to gather every chair they could find and place them all around one of the larger working stations, essentially creating a makeshift conference table. It was the only way to give everyone a proper place to sit.

Taking his seat at the head of the table, Urahara was the one to set things in motion. "I believe it would be best if we went over everything that happened first before deciding what our next step should be," he spoke up, drawing everyone's attention. "Before we get into that though, I believe there is someone here that we should all be very grateful to."

Everyone turned to look at the woman whose timely intervention had saved the lives of almost half the people in the room. Her cheeks reddened a little when she suddenly became the center of attention. Urahara smiled at her. "I think it's safe to say I speak for all of us when I say this: Miss Nelliel, thank you. If you hadn't stepped in when you did, I fear that there would have been a lot less people sitting at this table right now."

Nel smiled brightly, looking a little overwhelmed when everyone started spontaneously applauding for her. "N- no! It's alright," she stammered, clearly embarrassed. She hadn't expected to receive so much praise. "Honestly, I didn't even do all that much... What Tessai-san and the others did was far more impressive!"

"Don't even start Nel," Ichigo cut in, smiling for the first time in quite a while. "You were awesome back there, don't try to deny it."

"I concur," Ishida said somewhat stiffly. "Without your help, me and Tessai-san never would have been able to make it out of Hueco Mundo." From his side of the table, Chad gave Nel a thumbs-up while Orihime went over and hugged her. For the next few minutes, Nel was showered with praise from every direction as everyone chatted happily with her and with each other about what had happened and how relieved they were. This continued until Urahara interrupted again, reminding them that were was still plenty they needed to discuss. "Alright, alright, that's quite enough," he said, chuckling a bit. "I fear our heroine may become light-headed if she keeps blushing like that."

Everyone calmed down quickly enough, giving Urahara their undivided attention as he talked. "Since miss Nelliel is with us now, it would be quite rude to leave her out of the loop while we talk, so we should start by bringing her up to speed somewhat." Since no one argued, he kept on talking. "First of all, miss Nelliel: what do you know of the man you just encountered in Hueco Mundo?"

"Not much, I'm afraid." Her demeanor instantly changed as the topic shifted to Takahashi. When she spoke, she sounded completely relaxed and confident. Ichigo was a little taken aback at seeing her act so mature all of a sudden. He was used to the bubbly, hyperactive Nel who had nearly crushed him to death by hugging him last time he saw her. The Nel sitting next to him seemed older, wiser somehow. "All I know is that he suddenly appeared in Hueco Mundo about three days ago and attacked us at Las Noches. We believed him to be a Vasto Lorde at first, and labeled him _La Fiera - _the Wild Beast, since no one seemed to know who he was. It was only after I had been monitoring him for some time that I was able to discern that he was in fact a Shinigami."

Urahara nodded in response. "Well, we're still in the process of gathering information, so I hope you'll forgive me for giving you the abridged version for now. The man in question is named Takahashi Katsumi. Until 112 years ago, he held the position of Captain of the Third Squad in the Gotei 13. After Central 46, Soul Society's government, learned that he possessed Hollow powers, they ordered him to be executed. However, he went on a rampage, and it was decided that sealing him away would result in far less collateral damage than continuing to attempt killing him outright."

Nel didn't say anything as she listened to the story. Her expression however clearly showed that she had her doubts about the righteousness of Soul Society's leaders, who had sentenced one of their own to be executed for the sole reason of acquiring the powers of a Hollow. Being a Hollow-Shinigami hybrid herself, she was offended that it was even considered a crime in the first place.

"Obviously," Urahara continued, "he's not sealed anymore. He somehow managed to break out of a specialized, very high-level sealing array, leading us to believe he had outside help." That caught Ichigo's attention. He shared a look with his friends, who all wore similar expressions of confusion. "Excuse me," Uryu interrupted the shopkeeper, "but you believe he had an accomplice? Why is this the first time we're hearing about this?"

"Because until we find some proof, this is only conjecture at best," Urahara answered simply. "The physical location of the seal was extremely well-guarded. I can't imagine anyone getting near it undetected."

"I was asked to inspect the place," Yoruichi backed him up. "Back when I was still a Captain. It was only a couple of weeks after we'd been ordered to put him down. That place has so many well-trained guards and powerful Kido defending it, even I couldn't have broken in without help."

If even Yoruichi couldn't get in there, then no-one could, Ichigo reasoned. But if that was the case... "Then why would you think someone else busted him out?" Everyone turned to look at Ichigo now. "If no-one could get in without Soul Society knowing about it, he has to have escaped on his own, right?"

"The sole reason we believe he had help, and by we, I mean myself, Tessai and captain Ukitake, is because the other possibility is far more unlikely, if not outright impossible." He leaned forward and tented his fingers. "Izanagi's Seal, which was used to hold Takahashi, was designed specifically to restrain the most powerful of Shinigami. It is made in such a way that breaking it from the inside is completely impossible. It's an extremely complicated, and potentially dangerous spell if used carelessly. It manipulates both time and space, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that normally only the Head Captain and the leader of the Kido Corps know its exact mechanics. These are exceptional circumstances though, so I was given special permission by Captain Yamamoto to examine it, together with Tessai. We found there were no loopholes or weaknesses to exploit. Even a Kido master like Takahashi wouldn't stand any chance of escaping by himself."

There was a moment of silence following his statement. If Ichigo was understood correctly, there were only two options here. The first was as good as impossible, and the second was almost as unlikely as the first, only being considered because there were simply no other alternatives.

"Well then, if there are no further questions?" He looked expectantly at Nelliel, who shook her head. "Very well. Now then, there are some things I would like to know as well." He turned to Yoruichi. "What exactly happened in Hueco Mundo, for one."

"There's not much to say," Yoruichi stated sourly. "After I arrived, I went looking for anything that seemed out of the ordinary. I knew Takahashi was around, so I decided to lay low and moved around quickly using Shunpo. Unfortunately, by moving so fast I didn't notice the traps he'd set up in time. I ran right into a Kido web and got some nasty burns for my trouble." She crossed her arms, seemingly more angry at herself for failing to notice the trap in time than at Takahashi for putting them there in the first place. "When the trap went off I obviously gave away my location, so I started running in the opposite direction and hid among some rubble. I treated my injuries as well as I could and stayed there until the others found me." She looked away angrily. "Long story short, I screwed up and didn't learn a thing."

Urahara nodded quietly and didn't say anything more on the subject, sensing Yoruichi wasn't in any mood to talk right now. "Then, what happened after you found her?" he asked, now addressing Yoruichi's trio of rescuers. Tessai took it upon himself to answer. "He found us just as we came upon Yoruichi. He took us by surprise. We were barely within the closest scanner's effective range, so it didn't detect him in time. He immediately used a modified version of Hado 91: Kurohitsugi to hold me in place. "

Urahara frowned upon hearing that. "Hmm. Modifying Kido has always been one of his favorite pastimes..." he mumbled more to himself than to Tessai. "Out of curiosity, what did it do exactly?"

"Like the normal version of the spell, it caused a black coffin to form around me and subsequently had sharp protrusions appear on the inside," Tessai explained. "However, aside from some superficial injuries, these protrusions only served to immobilize me. The coffin didn't disappear right away either, as is usually the case, and caused me to remain trapped until miss Nelliel came to my aid." He bowed his head politely at Nelliel, who cheerily grinned back at him. "It actually had more of the properties of a Bakudo than of a Hado spell," he went on. "However, I see no reason for him not to target my vital areas. Even if he made some sort of mistake, I find it rather incredulous that _all_ of the spikes would miss me."

"I don't believe for a second that he missed by accident," Uryuu cut in. "If he really wanted us dead, he had plenty of opportunities to do it."

Urahara looked at him intently. "Are you perhaps speaking from personal experience, Ishida-kun?" he eventually asked.

Uryu swallowed uncomfortably, paling slightly. Whatever he was thinking of must have left quite an impression on him. "It's just that... he _chose_ let me live," Uryu said, his voice a bit shaky. "I mean... he had me. I couldn't fight back- I could hardly even move while under the influence of his Reiatsu. I was sure he was going to finish me, but..." He took a moment to compose himself. "All he did was use Kido to render me unconscious. By the time I woke up again, the others were already there to rescue me. Apart from the injuries I'd sustained earlier on while fighting him, I didn't have so much as a scratch on me."

"I see," Urahara said softly. He turned his inquiry to Chad this time, deciding to give Uryu a little time alone with his thoughts. "Sado-san. The only part of this story we're still missing is what happened on your end after you brought Yoruichi to safety. Can you enlighten us?"

Chad nodded. "After I met up with Nel and Tessai-san, we all attacked Takahashi at the same time to try and overwhelm him. For a while, that strategy worked, and Tessai-san was able to get to Uryu and wake him up. But when Takahashi saw that, he got pretty angry. He activated his Resurreccion and fought us off, but we managed to make it to the portal. The rest you already know," he promptly concluded. He wasn't one to to drag a story out.

Urahara nodded again. For a while he just sat there, looking at his hands as he mulled over everything he'd just heard. "That leaves me with just two more questions." He raised his head to look at Nel, his facial expression completely neutral. Ichigo knew that look. Urahara always wore it when he didn't want his expression to betray what he was thinking. Nel calmly raised her head to meet his gaze when she was addressed. "Forgive my rudeness, but why were you there, and what made you decide to help them?"

Ichigo frowned. Urahara still seemed to be having trouble trusting Nel. After what she had just done for them it was rather ungrateful of him to say the least. Ichigo was about to voice an angry retort, but to his surprise, Nel just smiled at Urahara, as if his suspicion was somehow amusing to her.

"Let me start by answering your second question first, mister Urahara, since it has the simplest answer." She didn't look offended in the least that he was doubting her motives. "When I arrived on the scene, Sado had just made it to the Garganta with Yoruichi-san, while Uryu was distracting the enemy. I detected another, much weaker Reiatsu signature in the distance, which belonged to Tessai-san. I admit I didn't know what was going on at that point, but since Chad and Uryu were there, I figured the two people who were with them must have been friends of Ichigo as well. I saw that they were having trouble against what I considered to be a common enemy, so I decided to assist them. After _la Fiera_- excuse me, Katsumi Takahashi," she corrected herself, "left the area to follow Uryu, I took it as my chance to free Tessai-san."

"Now to answer your first question," she continued, seeing that Urahara had wanted to interrupt her, "I was there because I was asked to keep an eye on him by miss Harribel. We, the surviving Arrancar, have banded together under her leadership. Together we had managed to turn Las Noches into a safe haven for our kind, but we were forced to abandon the fortress when _he _showed up." For the first time since she had started talking, her voice got a slightly bitter tone to it.

Ichigo thought back to what Grimmjow had said, about the Safe Zone for Arrancar at Las Noches. As it turns out, he had been telling the truth, but the Arrancar had already moved on by the time they had been able to search the fortress. Either way, Nel was here now, so it didn't really matter anymore.

"Miss Harribel held him off while we evacuated. He fought without any sense or reason, like a wild animal, earning him his moniker. Quite a few of us were killed or injured by the Cero blasts he fired at random." She paused for a moment. "One of my friends was hurt too. He got trapped by the falling rubble and we couldn't get him out." Orihime gasped softly, covering her mouth with her hands. "All the while, he kept getting closer to where we were. At that point, I felt that my only option was to join the fight."

Ichigo understood why she had abandoned her child form now. He had a pretty clear image of what had happened: Nel and her two brothers frantically trying to escape the fortress, rubble falling everywhere as the battle outside raged on, causing one of them to get stuck... she must have been so scared. She was carefree and happy as a child, and perhaps most importantly, didn't need to fight. However, when someone close to her was in danger, she had chosen their well-being over her own happiness. Just like she'd done for Ichigo during his fight with the Fifth Espada.

"It took both me and miss Harribel just to keep him busy. After everyone had escaped, we too were forced to retreat." She cleared her throat, her voice a bit hoarse after talking for so long. "We've set up camp in a new location now. I doubt he will be able to find us there, but I was monitoring him just to be safe."

"I see now," Urahara said. "I hope you can forgive me for doubting you, miss Nelliel."

"Don't apologize," she waved away his earlier comment. "I'd have been more worried if you hadn't doubted my motives." Ichigo could feel the tension in the room lifting now that everyone felt they could trust each other. Apparently feeling the need to be a proper host now that the tension was gone, Tessai got up from his seat and took some glasses and water bottles out of a cabinet on the wall, supplying everyone with something to drink. "I've told you my story, mister Urahara," Nel spoke up again after Tessai had handed her a glass of water. "Can I ask you a question now?"

"But of course."

"Among the Arrancar, Takahashi has come to be known as _la Fiera_ due to the savage way in which he attacked us. It was only very recently that I discovered that he was in fact a Shinigami rather than a Vasto Lorde. However, even when he took on his Hollow form again while chasing us, he didn't go berserk like the time he attacked Las Noches. Am I correct in assuming he now has control over his Resurrección?"

"From what I've heard from Kurosaki-san," Urahara said while gesturing toward Ichigo, "I believe he does indeed remain perfectly lucid while using his Resurrección." Urahara's eyes widened as he realized something. "Wait a minute... you said the attack happened three days ago?" he asked urgently. Nel nodded in response, frowning a little. "As I thought. Jaegerjaquez-san arrived here late last Friday after an encounter with Takahashi." When Grimmjow's name was mentioned, Nel's face seemed to light up. "We assume that was the first time Takahashi had attempted to use his Resurrección, and had not fully mastered it yet. After Jaegerjaquez-san escaped, he must have moved on to Las Noches..."

"In other words, he's even more dangerous now, in a way," Nel said, biting her lip. "But I'm happy to hear that Grimm-kun managed to get away. I was really worried about him..." Ichigo barely managed to suppress a snort as he heard Nel calling Grimmjow 'Grimm-kun'. He had a feeling that Grimmjow wasn't going to be happy when he found out about that. "Is he still here?" Nelliel asked eagerly, failing to hide her enthusiasm.

"He's upstairs. We believed it to be too dangerous to leave him to his own devices." Nel looked somewhat disappointed upon hearing that, but at the same time, didn't seem the slightest bit surprised. "Well then. With that out of the way, I believe it would be best if we decided what our next course of action should be."

Right away, the adults (which included Nel, of course) started talking business. They discussed a possible, temporary alliance between Urahara's group and the Arrancar as well as many different ways to combat Takahashi, including but not limited to traps, Kido, many different battle tactics as well as gadgets of Urahara's own design that might prove useful in future confrontations.

Everyone had something to contribute to the conversation. Even the normally quiet Chad came up with some good, unexpected tactics while Orihime had quite a few outlandish ideas that were so insane that they might have actually had a chance of working. Nel especially seemed supportive of Orihime's strategies, causing a few of the others to exchange worried looks.

The only one who didn't join in was Ichigo. Hearing everyone talk about what they could do to help only served to depress him. He wasn't of any use right now, after all. He looked at the faces of the people sitting around the table. No less than five of them had been in mortal danger and he hadn't been able to do a thing to help. If Nel hadn't shown up when she did, just how many of them would have made it back here?

Ichigo excused himself under the pretence of needing some fresh air, not willing to listen to the rest of the conversation.

"Are you alright, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime was clearly worried about him, but he really just wanted some time alone right now. He forced himself to put on a fake smile and acted like nothing was wrong. Ichigo doubted she was convinced by his poor acting skills, but frankly he didn't care one bit. He left the laboratory and managed to make it all the way up to ground level before he finally snapped.

"Dammit!" he spit out from between clenched teeth, pounding his fist against the wall.

"Dammit... Dammit..." He kept on cursing, each swear accompanied by another loud bang. He had never imagined that going back to being a regular human would have been so frustrating. To think that just a few days ago he'd been checking out colleges online, fully intent on moving on with his life.

"Oi! What the hell's wrong with you?!" Grimmjow's gruff voice sounded through the hallway. Ichigo flinched, quickly looking in the direction of the voice. Grimmjow was leaning out of a door frame further down the hall, looking very annoyed with all the noise Ichigo was making. "Get lost, Grimmjow." He scowled at the approaching man. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now."

Grimmjow lifted his eyebrows at him. "Yeah? Well tough shit, Kurosaki, 'cause I do happen to be in the mood." He leaned his shoulder against the wall and crossed his arms, smirking like the cocky bastard he was. Ichigo wanted to punch his teeth in. "So, what's got you throwing a bitch fit?" Ichigo sent him one of the nastiest glares in his arsenal, and was annoyed to see it having absolutely no effect on Grimmjow.

"You've been down there for a while now," Grimmjow remarked when Ichigo stayed silent, nodding his head at the door that led down to the lab. "Is that shopkeeper holding a tea party in there or something?"

In spite of himself, Ichigo chuckled at Grimmjow's rudeness. "Sort of. They're talking about Takahashi again." Clearly, that had caught his attention. "Yeah? Do they know where he is?" Grimmjow asked with obvious excitement. He didn't even try to hide his eagerness to fight the powerful Vizard again. Bruised ego, Ichigo supposed.

"Actually, he almost managed to break into the lab through the Garganta a little while back, but Urahara shut the portal in his face. That probably wasn't enough to kill him though, so I'm sure he'll return to Hueco Mundo soon enough." Clearly, Grimmjow wasn't satisfied with that answer. He clicked his teeth in annoyance, making Ichigo frown at him. "Do you really want to fight him again that badly?" he asked disbelievingly. Even if he'd still had his powers, Ichigo sure as hell wouldn't be that eager to go a second round with Takahashi. Not after what happened to him last time. Of course, he still would if the Soul Society or the World of the Living were in danger. He wasn't a coward after all. It just wouldn't be with the same... enthusiasm that Grimmjow was displaying.

Said Arrancar looked at him like he'd gone mad. "Are you fucking kidding me? Of course I want to fight that asshole again!" Grimmjow pushed off against the wall and started pacing through the hallway. "Do you have any idea how fucking annoying it is being locked up in this house all day?" He kept walking around restlessly as he complained, looking like a caged animal. "I'd give anything to go out and fight! I'd go to Hueco Mundo right fucking now if I could!"

"At least you _can_ fight." The words had slipped past Ichigo's lips before he could stop himself. Grimmjow stopped pacing. Slowly, he turned to look at Ichigo, looking like he couldn't believe what he had just heard. "Wait. THAT's what this is about?" Grimmjow said incredulously. He slowly closed in on Ichigo. "You lost your powers, so now you're just gonna sit on your ass and bitch about it?" They stared at each other. "I can't fucking believe this! That's pathetic, Kurosaki!"

Ichigo could feel his face redden. "Who are you calling pathetic, jackass?" he yelled at Grimmjow. "You think I enjoy sitting on the sidelines while my friends put themselves in danger? I hate it! It's driving me insane, but it's not like I can do anything about it!" Ichigo didn't think it was possible for him to get any angrier at this point, but Grimmjow quickly proved him wrong. The bastard started laughing, right in Ichigo's face.

"'Can't do anything about it?' Don't give me that crap. You're just taking the easy way out," he said mockingly. "If you wanna help your little posse so badly, stop being a whiny bitch and find a way to get your powers back already." Ichigo clenched his jaw. He was five seconds away from grabbing Grimmjow's head and smashing it into a wall. "I already told you," he almost growled, "it's not that sim-"

"WHO CARES?!" Grimmjow suddenly roared, making Ichigo flinch. "If you want your powers back that badly, then FIND A WAY!" He roughly shoved Ichigo, pushing him up against the wall. "Don't give me that 'it's impossible' bullshit," Grimmjow hissed. His eyes were fuming. The concept of personal space obviously wasn't something Grimmjow cared about very much: he was so up in Ichigo's face that if anyone saw them right now, it would probably look like they were making out... in a rather violent manner. "If you say that, it just means you've already given up." Apparently having said what he wanted to say, Grimmjow gave Ichigo another harsh shove and stalked back off to his room.

Gingerly rubbing his chest where Grimmjow had hit him, Ichigo watched him leave. He wanted to run after him, scream at him and beat his face to a bloody pulp, but his anger had reached a level where his brain no longer seemed capable of handling basic motor functions. By the time Ichigo could think somewhat coherently again, Grimmjow was already gone, and he was left alone in the hallway, shaking with rage. What Grimmjow said had certainly hit a nerve. He wanted nothing more than to walk right into that bastard's room and force him to eat those words, but Ichigo knew that would be counterproductive. Counting backwards from ten in his head, he took some deep breaths in order to calm himself down somewhat.

Screw him. Ichigo decided Grimmjow just wasn't worth it.

He started walking again, but in the opposite direction, away from Grimmjow's room. Seeing as he would only be getting in the way if he stayed here, Ichigo decided to go home. The others probably wouldn't even notice he was gone, being too absorbed in their strategy meeting. Heading straight for the front door, he grabbed his bag, put his shoes back on and walked right out. He quickly typed out a text message and sent it to Chad before promptly switching the phone off. What he needed right now was some alone time. He stubbornly refused to look behind him as he went.

Urahara meanwhile, looked out the window at Ichigo's retreating back. The older man sighed wearily. It wasn't hard for him to imagine how Ichigo was feeling right now. He had heard the entire conversation between him and Grimmjow while standing in the stairway. He honestly hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but then they had been pretty loud and he didn't want to intrude on them by suddenly walking out into the hallway either.

While Jaegerjaquez-san's words had been harsh, perhaps that was just what Ichigo needed to get out of his rut. But even if Ichigo did decide to look for a way to regain his powers, would he succeed? Most likely not. Urahara had already looked for a way to do it, but had come up with nothing. The logical part of his mind said that he should just leave things the way they are, and not take any unnecessary risks just to help out one person.

His heart on the other hand, did not want to leave things as they were. He wanted to help Ichigo. The boy had already done so much, both for him personally and for the rest of the world as well.

"Impossible, huh?" Urahara muttered to himself. "Maybe not..." There was one option that might work. He just never seriously considered using it before now. There were no guarantees of success. In fact, things could go very, very wrong. Not just that, but he would need the approval of the Central 46, which in itself would already be nothing less than a miracle...

Urahara blinked, halting his train of thought. Was he seriously thinking about this? The risks far outweighed any potential benefits this course of action might bring them. Logic dictated that he should abandon this plan, and banish these thoughts to the furthest recesses of his mind. Then again, experience had taught him that logic never really applied where Ichigo was involved. Besides, if his initial assumption was correct, there would hardly be any risk at all... he hoped.

Urahara walked back toward the laboratory entrance. After the strategy meeting was finished, he'd need to make some calls.

* * *

><p>Grimmjow's words kept on bothering Ichigo throughout the week. He tried to act like it didn't didn't bother him, but his friends could tell he was acting more withdrawn than usual. Every now and then they would tentatively ask him what was wrong, but Ichigo would just brush them off and end the conversation right then and there. Both Chad and Uryu quickly learned not to press the issue, but Orihime proved to be more persistent and kept trying despite repeated failures. On Wednesday Tatsuki had held him up in the hallway after class, giving him some verbal abuse for making Orihime worry like that. Even so, he kept on sulking by himself and refused to talk to anyone about the topic.<p>

By Thursday however, Ichigo was forced to admit that perhaps there had been a grain of truth to what Grimmjow had said.

Ichigo had known that he would lose his powers. He had accepted that once it happened, that chapter of his life would be over and done with and he wouldn't get involved with Soul Reapers or Hollows again for what he hoped would be a very long time. Back then, he had been perfectly alright with that. The war was over, so he had believed his friends in Soul Society would have been safe from then on.

But the situation was different now, and lacking the abilities he'd had as a Soul Reaper was proving to be far more of an inconvenience than he had expected it to be. The fact that he had already gone through the entire emotional roller-coaster that accompanied the whole ordeal and had put it all behind him, was now acting as a mental roadblock for Ichigo. He had been fully prepared to settle back into his old, relatively peaceful lifestyle. Which is why it was so damn hard for him to admit that he wanted to be a Shinigami again.

Over the last few days, Ichigo had gotten a taste of what it was like to sit on the sidelines, and it clearly didn't suit him one bit. He was sick of being useless, of having to wait anxiously for his friends to return from whatever dangerous situation they had gotten themselves into while he was forced to stay behind and do nothing.

He'd been stewing over his internal dilemma for three days, but now, he could say with absolute certainty that he truly wanted, or rather _needed _to rejoin the fight. He would go mad if he had to stay behind in Urahara's lab again while his friends went out to fight. While Ichigo didn't know how he was going to do it yet, he _would _be getting his powers back, no ifs, ands or buts about it. Ichigo was by nature not someone who let others do the fighting while he sat on his ass.

And as much as he didn't want to admit it, he had Grimmjow to thank for coming to that realization. Still, he was sure he would have gotten his thoughts lined up without that asshole's help too, if given some time. Probably. Grimmjow just sped the process up a little. Ichigo wasn't willing to give him any more credit than that.

Sighing deeply, as he'd been doing rather often lately, he ran a hand through his hair (he could really use a trim) and looked at the clock above the blackboard. Just twenty minutes to go until the final bell rang. He'd be making a short detour before he went home tonight.

* * *

><p>Urahara was absently scratching the stubble on his chin, still looking a little caught off guard. His reaction was understandable, given that Ichigo had shown up at his doorstep completely out of the blue and asked, rather bluntly, for a way to regain his powers. The teen had never been the type to mince words, but still; <em>some <em>tact was expected with matters like these.

They were in the small communal room again, which Urahara often utilized when he had guests. Ichigo was impatiently tapping his fingers against his teacup as the silence dragged on. Urahara hadn't said anything for a long time after Ichigo had finished explaining his motivation for returning to the life of a Shinigami.

"You're absolutely certain?" he finally said, after what felt like an eternity of waiting.

"I'm sick of being useless," Ichigo replied without missing a beat. "I want to fight."

Urahara nodded somewhat absently. Then, he smiled, so briefly that Ichigo could have sworn he had imagined it. "I will admit, I have already given the matter some thought. You're not the type to sit on the sidelines, Kurosaki-san," he grinned. Ichigo hadn't done a very good job of hiding his surprise. Not only had Urahara accepted his change of heart almost right away, he'd even been looking for solutions by himself already! The man's expression quickly turned serious again. "There is... there is one way that has a _fairly_ high chance of success..." he began cautiously, seemingly unsure of whether he should even be telling him this in the first place.

Ichigo eagerly leaned forward, spurring Urahara on. "But it's dangerous. The stakes are very high. Too high, even."

"Well, are there any other options?" Ichigo interrupted him. Urahara's silence told him enough. "Then I'll do it. I don't care what the risks are, I'll-"

"No."

The unusually harsh tone Urahara had addressed him with was enough to make Ichigo flinch. "You're being too reckless, Ichigo. There are many people who would be very upset if they knew how unconcerned you are with your own safety." Ichigo looked away, feeling the weight of his mentor's gaze. They say disappointment hurts more than anger, but a combination of the two certainly did a bang up job of making him feel like crap.

Urahara wasn't done yet, though: "Also, you would not be the only one in danger if the situation took a turn for the worse. Many lives could potentially be lost." Thinking it safe to make eye contact again, Ichigo asked: "Just what is this idea of yours to get my powers back? You've gotten me and my friends involved in plenty of dangerous schemes where people could have gotten killed. How is this time any different?"

Urahara shook his head. "Please, just... forget what I said, Kurosaki-san. I shouldn't have brought it up in the first place." Seeing that Ichigo wanted to protest, he raised his hand to bid for silence. "Even if we choose to ignore the massive risks, this path simply isn't open to us at this point in time. Maybe in the future it will be, but I honestly hope it never comes to that."

Ichigo had no idea what Urahara was talking about, but he could sense that this particular subject was closed and he wasn't planning on forcing the issue. If there was even the slightest chance of innocent people being hurt, Ichigo felt it was far too irresponsible to try and pursue this path.

"I'll look for another way, Kurosaki-san. I know there has to be something I can do. Until then, I recommend you ask Ishida-san to help you with some basic Reishi-controlling exercises. As a Quincy, he has excellent control over the flow of Spirit Particles. Just that could already help you regain some of your Reiryoku."

"Alright." While Ichigo wasn't exactly looking forward to asking for Uryu's help, he would just have to swallow his pride this time. Getting strong enough to rejoin the fight was far more important than that.

"Well then," Urahara said, preparing to stand up, "I still have much to do, so-"

"KISUKE!" Yoruichi's voice reverberated throughout the house. "Uh-oh" was all Urahara said as the sound of Yoruichi's footsteps got louder and louder as she closed in on them. She burst into the room and went straight for Urahara, apparently not even noticing that Ichigo was in the room with them.

"So this is where you've been hiding!" She pointed her finger at Urahara accusingly. The poor man had just managed to get back to his feet, but Yoruichi promptly pushed him back down on his ass. "I'm sick of your excuses, Kisuke! Open the damn portal right now!"

"But Yoruichiii," he complained childishly while rubbing his pained backside, "It's too dangerous for you to go to Hueco Mundo by yourself again!"

"Then it's a good thing I won't be going alone, isn't it?" she bit back. "Nelliel will be joining me," she elaborated rather haughtily, crossing her arms. The pair continued to argue loudly, either not realizing or simply not caring that Ichigo was there. He didn't really understand what was going on; why on Earth would Yoruichi want to go back to Hueco Mundo after everything that happened the last time around?

"Dammit, Kisuke! I know he's hiding something, and I want to know what it is! Uryu said so too; thanks to him I even have a good idea of where to look!"

"Stop trying to change my mind, Yoruichi. It won't work," Urahara stubbornly maintained. "Besides, miss Nelliel said so herself," he pressed on when he saw Yoruichi was about to yell at him again. "If she expends too much energy, she risks reverting to her child-form. She's not suited for combat right now."

"There's not going to be any combat, because he's not going to catch us!" Yoruichi snapped back at him, but it didn't appear that Urahara was going to be convinced by any of her arguments. "Pull your head out of your ass and stop be so goddamn stubborn, Kisuke!" she screamed in frustration.

Ichigo cringed. It was the first time he'd seen Urahara and Yoruichi disagreeing with each other to the point where they actually started yelling at each other. It reminded Ichigo of the very few times he'd witnessed his parents fighting when he was little. Even so, from the scraps of information he'd heard so far in between the yelling and name-calling, he managed to get a general idea of what the problem was here: Takahashi had hidden something in Hueco Mundo. During the rescue mission, Uryu had apparently gotten quite close to whatever it was and told Yoruichi of its location, which meant that they already knew where to look. They had also gotten an idea of what traps Takahashi used and how to evade them, which meant that the only thing they still lacked was some decent firepower in the unlikely case it came to blows.

In other words, they needed someone who was both fast and able to remain undetected, but could also pack a punch in a direct confrontation. It just so happened that Ichigo knew someone who fit that description to the letter, and would be all too eager to participate in a mission involving Takahashi. The only problem here was that there was no guarantee he wouldn't turn against them, but he was sure Urahara would be able to remedy that.

"Oi, guys!" he called out, temporarily making them halt their verbal shit-flinging. "I think I may know someone who could back you up, Yoruichi." Neither of them noticed the tiny smirk that was starting to form on Ichigo's face.

* * *

><p>Just as Ichigo had expected, getting Grimmjow to agree hadn't been the least bit difficult, much to the surprise of Urahara and Yoruichi. There had been the issue of Grimmjow potentially backstabbing them during the mission, but thanks to Urahara's latest invention, that risk had already been minimized.<p>

"There, that should do it," the resident mad scientist piped up, taking a few steps away from Grimmjow to admire his handiwork from a distance. Admittedly, an explosive collar was a rather crude form of insurance, but it would just have to do for now. "You're good to go, Jaegerjaquez-san." Urahara removed the Reiryoku-draining shackles and placed them on a stool, with Grimmjow's discarded Gigai sitting down on the floor next to it. The second those handcuffs stopped making contact with Grimmjow's skin, the weight of his Reiatsu immediately crashed into Ichigo, giving him a short bout of vertigo. Without his own Reiatsu to act as a buffer, Ichigo had somewhat of a hard time resisting the power Grimmjow was subconsciously emitting. It was almost as frustrating as it was embarrassing.

Now that his hands were free, Grimmjow carefully prodded the thick black collar around his neck. Clearly, he was none too happy with it. He glared at Urahara, who cheerily grinned back at him, but didn't say or do anything otherwise. It was just something he was going to have put up with in exchange for getting involved in the action. Compared to slowly going mad while locked up in his room, he figured this was a small price to pay.

"I've just contacted Nelliel," Yoruichi announced as she walked up to the three men. "She said she'll meet up with us near the Southernmost point of Las Noches' outer wall."

"Alright. Then I'll run the final system checks and you'll be good to go." Urahara sat down behind his console and began typing in commands. He'd been spending a lot of time at that computer lately. "In the meantime Kurosaki-san, could you hand Jaegerjaquez-san his Zanpakuto? He's probably going to need it."

Ichigo didn't even have to look to know that he had just become the focus of Grimmjow's attention. He could almost literally feel the other man's eager gaze burning holes into his back as he moved to open the heavy, reinforced box Urahara had set on the table behind him. It was rectangular in shape, and was just big enough to store a blade in. It was obvious Urahara had been very careful with Grimmjow's sword; it was even wrapped in cloth to prevent any scratches from getting on it. Ichigo carefully took the blade out of the chest and brought it over to Grimmjow, who was clearly doing his best not to jump Ichigo and rip it right out of his hands.

As soon as Ichigo was within reach, Grimmjow snatched the sword away from him before he even had time to blink. He ripped of the cloth and carelessly tossed it to the floor, meticulously inspecting every square inch of his Zanpakuto, as if he was sure Urahara had done something to it.

Ichigo didn't blame him one bit.

"Well then, ready to go, Jaegerjaquez-san?" Urahara interrupted him, apparently finished with the preparations. Behind him, the enormous device was already busy tearing a hole in space to open a passageway to Hueco Mundo. Honestly, Ichigo thought it was somewhat pointless to use the device when Grimmjow could have accomplished the same result just by snapping his fingers. In fact, Ichigo wasn't entirely sure why Urahara had even bothered to build the thing in the first place when he was perfectly capable of opening a Garganta himself. He made a mental note to ask about it sometime.

Grimmjow took one last look at Pantera and, finding nothing out of the ordinary with it, slid the blade back into its scabbard. He gave Urahara a curt nod to show that he was ready, and walked over to the stabilizing Garganta. Yoruichi quickly joined him, playfully smiling at Grimmjow, but she was ignored completely.

Ichigo walked up behind them, feeling more than a little discomforted about not being able to join them. "Good luck," he said hesitantly. While he had meant to address both of them, only Yoruichi responded by turning around and giving a thumbs-up, while Grimmjow, not surprisingly, didn't seem to care.

With a final, decisive tap, Urahara finished inputting the required commands. "All done on my end. Now let's get this show on the road, shall we?"

* * *

><p>Grimmjow inhaled deeply, taking in the familiar scent. While he felt no real attachment to this empty desert, it was still technically his home and he was far more familiar with this environment than he was with the chaotic World of the Living. The high concentration of Reishi in the air also did him a lot of good. The portal had taken them to an area that was approximately two kilometers away from where they would rendezvous with Nel. While this was somewhat inconvenient, opening a Garganta any closer than that would no doubt give away their location to the enemy. The trip from here to Las Noches would also give them a chance to look around and see if anything was out of the ordinary.<p>

"You must be happy to be back," his female companion asked casually. He noticed that in spite of how aloof she acted, she was actually being pretty vigilant, and was already scanning their surroundings for the slightest hint of danger.

"Not particularly," Grimmjow grunted offhandedly, hoping that she would just keep her trap shut for the rest of the mission. He hated the talkative types, especially when any physical abuse on his part would leave him without a head on his shoulders thanks to the collar they had put on him. And he personally preferred it firmly attached, thank you very much.

Yoruichi frowned somewhat. "Not much of a conversationalist, are you?" Grimmjow didn't even bother to answer this time, and Yoruichi clearly hadn't expected him to. Without another word, she took of in the direction of the abandoned fortress, with Grimmjow being forced to follow. He wasn't giving that shopkeeper any excuses to flip the switch that would make his head go 'pop'.

Even so, annoyed as he was with the collar around his neck, it felt pretty damn good to be out in the field again. And while he disliked the woman, he had to admit she was skilled. She was barely putting in any effort, and he was already straining to keep up with her. It was clear she was an expert at Stealth operations too: the vast open desert didn't leave them much spaces to hide, so they were for the most part completely exposed, but she made damn good use of the cover they did come across. Every time they passed a sufficiently large rock or piece of rubble, they would stop to look for any traps that could impede their progress, and start moving again immediately after confirming it was safe. Another thing that had impressed Grimmjow was how she would seemingly pick out the best routes purely by instinct: without needing to think about it she would pick a path that would be both easy for them to navigate, as well as provide them with natural protection in the form of dunes or trenches in the sand.

But no matter how good she was, Grimmjow had the home field advantage here. While Yoruichi took the lead for the most part, she knew well enough to listen to Grimmjow's advice when he signaled her to take a different route. The desert hid many dangers that only someone completely familiar with it knew how to evade. All in all, despite the lack of verbal communication, they made a surprisingly good team.

As such they reached the rendezvous point much quicker than anticipated, all the while being relatively certain that they hadn't been detected yet. On the other hand, they hadn't managed to find Takahashi either, so they had no idea what he was up to at the moment.

"You got here sooner than I thought you would." Grimmjow reflexively reached for Pantera when he heard the voice, thinking it was an enemy, but was quickly proven wrong. Nelliel's head suddenly popped out of the ground in front of them, soon followed by the rest of her body as she emerged from an underground tunnel. To his shame, Grimmjow had never even known of the existence of said tunnel, despite having lived in the fortress for quite a while.

"It seems you found a good hiding place," Yoruichi said approvingly as they politely shook hands in greeting. Nelliel eagerly nodded in agreement. "There's many underground passageways like this one. Not just under Las Noches either, some of them go on for miles further into the desert. They're really useful for smuggling supplies to our encampment."

Grimmjow had stalked off to the side somewhat, hoping that Nelliel would just leave him alone, but that was clearly too much to hope for. "And Grimm-kun! I'm really happy to see you're alright." He refused to look at her. If he did, he didn't think he would be able to hold back the murderous rage that had welled up the second that godawful nickname had come out of her mouth. Fortunately for him and Nelliel both, Yoruichi had realized what was going through Grimmjow's head and warningly placed a hand on his shoulder. "Play nice, now."

Literally bristling with annoyance, Grimmjow stopped reaching for his sword and turned in Nelliel's direction. He still refused to look directly at her, though. "Hi," he finally grunted, and that was about all they would be getting out of him for the rest of their time together.

It seemed to be good enough for Yoruichi. She let go of him and started speaking again: "Alright, the plan's simple: if we see him, we hide. If he sees us, we run for the portal and don't look back. Any questions? No? Then let's go."

Once again, they took off at a high speed. When it came to using Sonido, Nel seemed to be on par with Grimmjow, though he was rather pleased to see that he might have had the edge in endurance: Yoruichi didn't slow down in the least as they curved around Las Noches' massive dome, and fatigue got to her much quicker than it did for himself and Yoruichi. Ever since Nnoitra had cracked her head open, the amount of Reiryoku she could store in her body had decreased dramatically. He hadn't even been Espada-rank yet when that had happened, but he remembered just how strong Nelliel Tu Odelschwank had been back in the day.

They eventually slowed down once they got closer to their destination. He could already see the giant 'Zen-garden' the shopkeeper had briefed him on in the distance. He was familiar with the area, but had never taken the time to inspect it more closely. From this point onward, they would most likely be dealing with Takahashi's traps. Though the man himself was nowhere to be seen so far.

"It looks like the coast is clear, but you never know with that guy," Yoruichi whispered. "He could be hiding just about anywhere. Do either of you see anything?"

Nel closed her eyes as she concentrated on the Reiatsu in the air around them. "He's definitely been here not too long ago," she said. "But I'm quite certain he's nowhere near at the moment."

"Same here," Grimmjow spoke up. "Can't see him, smell him, or sense his Reiatsu, apart from some residual energy. Don't hear anything out of the ordinary either. He's not here, though I doubt he went very far." Even if he had somehow managed to hide himself so well even a skilled tracker like Grimmjow couldn't find him, they were in a relatively open area. The crystal trees didn't make the best hiding spots, and sufficiently large rocks were far and few between. If he was hiding, they'd spot him the second he made a move.

"It would certainly make things easier on us if he's not home. We'll move in closer, but at a slower pace this time. Remember, there will most likely be traps, and you won't be able to spot them easily. Be careful." Yoruichi started running again, but she didn't dare use Shunpo anymore. That was simply too risky at this point.

While the mission was going well, Grimmjow was seriously disappointed. He'd actually been hoping to run into the bastard again. While victory may admittedly be a bit too much to hope for, he should at least be able to get a few solid hits in now that he was somewhat prepared for a confrontation. Well, that's what he told himself, at least.

As Yoruichi had predicted, they came across plenty of traps as they zeroed in on their goal. The cloaked Kido webs had been expected, but the Kido minefields? Now those could have been dangerous had Yoruichi not detected them in time. The webs were annoying simply because there were so goddamn many of them, but at least Grimmjow could spot those and alter his route in time. With the mines on the other hand, he had no way to tell where they were. He just wasn't good enough at detecting and differentiating the many Reiatsu sources. Even using Pesquisa proved fruitless. Nelliel was having slightly more luck than him in that department (to his unending frustration) but Yoruichi was the only one who could make reliable predictions of their locations. She saved his ass more than once by warning him in the nick of time that he was mere inches removed from setting off one of the infernal things.

The worst part was that they couldn't risk blowing them up prematurely either, since that would most likely alert Takahashi and let him know where they were. Grimmjow was a little surprised that the enemy would use such a method to defend his territory. While they were fighting, he certainly hadn't gotten the impression that he was a rational person who planned ahead. Yet from what he'd found out about him in the last few days, the guy was apparently some sort of freaking wizard that used mostly Soul Reaper magic to fight. He guessed appearances could be deceiving.

He was snapped out of his reveries when Yoruichi gave them the signal to stop moving. "It should be around here," she said, a hint of uncertainty in her voice. Grimmjow could guess what had her feeling uneasy: getting here had been far too easy. They were smack dab in the middle of the area they were supposed to scout, and yet Takahashi was nowhere to be found. There was simply no way he would leave this place so defenseless if it was indeed as important as Yoruichi and the shopkeeper seemed to believe. It was true that all these traps would keep out most unwanted visitors, but they were clearly lacking in the case of an intruder who specialized in stealth. What's more, he should have already known that Yoruichi might have been coming. All this added up to 'danger' in Grimmjow's mind.

"Yoruichi-san," Nelliel spoke up. She'd wandered off in another direction when they arrived, apparently having found something. "What is it?" The other two members of the party went to join her, expertly evading another mine they came across as they walked.

"There's something here. I can't get through." To demonstrate, she picked up a handful of sand and threw it at the seemingly empty space in front of her. Instead of simply falling to the ground, the sand made contact with something solid and slid down its surface, revealing something that was rather large and spherical in shape.

"It's a cloaking field!" Yoruichi exclaimed. "I've never even seen one this big. This has to be it!"

They all stared at where the barrier was. For a while, nobody said anything.

"You uh... You don't think he's in there... do you?" Grimmjow asked cautiously, still closely monitoring the area in front. "I really, really hope not," Yoruichi replied, not very reassuringly. "So how about we just shoot first and ask questions later then, because standing here like a bunch of pussies isn't going to do us much good," Grimmjow stated matter-of-factly.

Yoruichi frowned, clearly not liking the idea, but surprisingly enough Nel backed him up on this one. "I agree with Grimm-kun, Yoruichi-san. We've already made it this far, and in a worst-case scenario it's still three-to-one. At the very least, we should be able to escape if he does show up. He's powerful, but all three of us are faster than he is."

The only reason Grimmjow hadn't violently murdered her yet for using that bloody annoying nickname again was that he might get to blow something up thanks to her input. While murder would definitely be much more gratifying than just blowing up the barrier, it would also result in his head being torn from his body by means of a violent explosion. It was probably for the best if he held off on killing her, at least until he got rid of the collar around his neck.

"You do have a point," Yoruichi finally admitted to Grimmjow's elation. She sighed, accepting that this was really the only thing they could do aside from giving up, and held out her arm toward the invisible dome. "Let's do this, then." Blue flames appeared in her open palm.

Grimmjow couldn't help but grin ferociously as he mirrored her gesture and gathered up energy for a Cero blast. Nelliel followed suit, the only difference being that she fired her own, violet Cero from her mouth instead of her palm. The three of them unleashed their attacks at the same time; two powerful Cero combined with the blue, fiery explosion caused by Yoruichi's Soren Sokatsui were more than enough to rip the barrier to shreds. Space seemed to warp as the illusion disappeared, revealing what had been inside of the dome.

"There's... Nothing inside," Yoruichi said disbelievingly. "I'll admit it is rather anticlimactic," Nelliel added. Grimmjow summed the situation up most accurately, though: "Well, this bites."

Not ready to give up just yet, Yoruichi jogged over to where the dome had been, searching for anything else that may have been cloaked. She was quickly forced to admit that there really wasn't anything there. "Yoruichi-san. We should move," Nelliel urged. "After that explosion, he has to know that we're here now... This whole thing may have been a trap from the very beginning."

She shook her head. "No. He wouldn't go through all this trouble just to lure us here. I think he was hiding something in that dome. We just waited too long to come here. He must have already moved it."

"How the fuck does any of that matter right now?" Grimmjow rudely interrupted their conversation. "I don't know about you two, but I'd rather not get caught in an ambush."

"He's right, Yoruichi-san. We have to go now." She looked around nervously, obviously expecting something to happen. "There's no point in taking the long way back to the portal. I'll open a Garganta from here and-" They didn't find out what else Nelliel was going to do, because at that very moment, something rather large fell from the sky and landed right in front of her feet, instinctively making her leap backwards.

"'Tall, beautiful young woman, green hair, cracked mask with horns'... You must be Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. You wouldn't happen to know that guy, would you?" Takahashi came out from behind a large rock, looking like a total savage. The top of his Shinigami uniform was simply gone, his Hakama were in tatters, he was barefoot and his hair was so greasy and messy it looked like he had a bird's nest on his head. The fact that he had partially-dried blood splattered all over him didn't do his image any good either.

Grimmjow looked at what Takahashi had thrown toward them. Upon closer inspection, it turned out be a person rather than an object. The poor bastard wasn't looking too good, though.

"I found him wandering around Las Noches, looking for supplies. He told me lots of interesting things." Takahashi slowly came closer. His calm demeanor was in stark contrast to his current appearance. To be fair though, anyone that wasn't a Hollow would probably look like that after spending half a week in the wilderness of Hueco Mundo. Even Grimmjow, being for the most part a Hollow, hadn't looked too respectable after wandering around the desert by himself for a few days. "Though he wasn't very talkative at first," Takahashi went on. "I had to spur him on a little."

Nelliel dropped to her knees beside the injured male Arrancar and gently held him up. Grimmjow didn't recognize him, but that didn't mean much. Apart from his Fraccion, he never cared about any of the other Arrancar in the slightest. "I'm so sorry, Nelliel-sama," the injured Arrancar sputtered. "I... I told him about the encampment. And about you and miss Harribel." He took some shallow breaths. "The pain was... was simply too much."

"It's alright. Don't try to talk too much." Nelliel quickly looked him over. He had multiple lacerations, a broken arm, and burn marks on his chest from what she could see. Painful, but not deadly. He would be alright after getting proper treatment. She turned to Takahashi, sending him a glare so nasty even Grimmjow was involuntarily shocked. "Why did you do this?"

"Because I needed information. I've been out of the loop for 112 years, you know." Say whatever you will about him, Takahashi was pretty straightforward, at least. He stopped moving once there was only ten meters of sand separating him from Nelliel and the rest of the group. "According to what he told me, I missed out on quite a bit. Aizen taking command of the Hollows and trying to take over the world was pretty unexpected. Even more surprising was the fact that he almost succeeded, too. And while my informant wasn't entirely sure about this last piece of gossip, he said it was Ichigo Kurosaki who was finally able to stop him. It's a good thing I neutralized him when I had the chance."

"You bastard!" It was the first thing Yoruichi had said since Takahashi appeared. "Haven't you done enough damage already?! And for what, petty revenge? I never imagined you'd sink so low, Katsumi," she sneered at him. Now Grimmjow was far from an expert on this sort of thing, but it sure looked to him like there was a history there.

"Don't tell me you're getting upset over what I did to that Hollow. I even kept my word and didn't kill him after I got the info I needed. Last time I checked, you were still a Shinigami. They're sort of our natural enemies, remember? Speaking of which," he looked straight into Grimmjow's eyes, and Grimmjow involuntarily took a step back before he could stop himself. "I'm not sure I approve of the company you're keeping."

"Times have changed, Katsumi," she countered. "As I'm sure you've already noticed." Takahashi smiled at her thinly-veiled jab at him, but he kept staring at Grimmjow, and it was seriously starting to freak him out. Part of him just wanted to let loose and tear into that fucker, but another, more rational part told him he'd be facing certain death if he did. That first part was rapidly beating out the second though.

"We've already met, haven't we?" he finally addressed Grimmjow directly. To his own satisfaction, he didn't so much as flinch this time. "We sure did." Surprising even himself, Grimmjow sent the other man a bloodthirsty smirk. Any fear or hesitation he'd had earlier on was suddenly being replaced by the intense desire to tear the man in front of him into tiny, bloody pieces. "Not that long ago, actually. You having trouble remembering? 'Cause I'd be more than willing to jog your memory."

Takahashi seemed amused by his sudden shift in demeanor. "I'll admit, my memory is a bit fuzzy when it comes to the first few days I was in Hueco Mundo. It seems I went a little overboard back then. Congratulations on surviving, by the way."

Grimmjow cackled madly. "You son of a bitch," he chuckled, unsheathing Pantera as he closed the distance between the two of them. "I'm going to enjoy-" A blur suddenly passed him by and slammed into Takahashi, knocking him off his feet. "Get out of here!" Yoruichi screamed at her two allies. A white energy enveloped her entire body as she moved at speeds Grimmjow hadn't thought possible.

Nelliel suddenly grabbed his arm from behind, making him jerk back. "Grimm, we have to go!" she was carrying the injured Arrancar on her back. A Garganta was already waiting right behind her. When Grimmjow failed to respond, she pulled on his arm with what seemed like far too much strength for a woman of her slim posture.

"Let go, woman! I'm not running away again!" He forcibly pulled his arm free, intent on joining the fight. Takahashi had put on his Hollow Mask and was currently firing one Cero after the other at Yoruichi, accompanied by fireballs, massive golden chains that tried to pin her down and god knows what else, but none of it was hitting her. She was just way too fast for him.

"**Was smashing my face in not enough for you, Yoruichi?!"** Takahashi screamed at her in between Kido incantations. If he still cared about Grimmjow and Nelliel being there, he sure wasn't showing it.

No way in Hell was Grimmjow just going to run with his tail between his legs. And he definitely wasn't letting some stupid woman he didn't even like put herself in danger for his benefit. He was already indebted to far too many people as it was. "Grimmjow, what are you doing?! Yoruichi-san can make it back to the other Garganta by herself! We would just get in her way!"

"Like I care!" Grimmjow screamed back at her. He put the razor sharp edge of his Zanpakutou against his palm and pulled the blade back, producing a sizable cut. A stream of blood quickly welled up from the wound and started dripping onto the sand. He held out his bleeding palm, aiming for Takahashi as he prepared another Cero. "Shihoin! Get away!" he screamed at the top of his lungs as the Cero in his hand turned electric blue and its power became too great to hold back. He just hoped she'd heard him; the shopkeeper probably wouldn't be too happy with him if he happened to hit the woman with a Gran Rey Cero.

Not being able to suppress the energy any longer, Grimmjow let it all go in one giant, cataclysmic blast that wiped away everything in its path. Ideally, that would include Takahashi, but he couldn't tell yet since the beam was obscuring his vision.

Unable to aim properly with one hand, he planted Pantera in the sand and used his left hand to grab his wrist and steady the humongous death ray somewhat.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FREAKING MIND!?" an obviously very pissed off Yoruichi screamed into his ear. Seeing how angry she was only served to amuse him, really. Plus, since Yoruichi was standing behind him now and was thus out of the danger zone, he really had no reason to hold back anymore, did he? Grinning like an utter psychopath, he pumped all the Spirit Power he had into the Gran Rey Cero, making the beam even wider than it already was. In exchange for using that much power, his accuracy and control were greatly reduced of course, but who really cared? He sure didn't.

The beam swayed erratically from left to right now that Grimmjow couldn't fully control it anymore. Anything it hit, be it crystal tree or solid rock, was instantaneously reduced to dust. After completely decimating the landscape and most likely attracting the attention of every Hollow in Hueco Mundo with the laser light show Grimmjow was providing, the beam finally lost power. Grimmjow fell to one knee, chuckling as he saw the devastation he had wrought. At first, he didn't see Takahashi anywhere. Then, he noticed the massive trench in the sand that started in about the same place the man had been standing earlier, and kept going for easily a hundred meters. At the end of said trench, off into the distance, he could make out four separate, white shield-like objects partially buried in the sand. As he looked, the first crumbled into dust, revealing the second and third shields to each have a massive hole in the center, leaving only the fourth and last one in somewhat decent condition. "Damn," Yoruichi said, her tone of voice holding the middle between 'impressed' and 'disappointed'. "You should have kept it up just a little longer." The meaning behind her words quickly became clear: the three remaining shields all dislodged themselves from the sand and floated upward, revealing-

"Son of a bitch," Grimmjow breathed out. With some effort, Takahashi slowly climbed out of the trench he'd made when pushed back by Grimmjow's attack. Grimmjow was rather satisfied to see him stumble and almost trip over something as he got to his feet. He did not look happy.

Nelliel cleared her throat, making him and Yoruichi look at her. "I believe it would be a good idea to leave right now," she said rather calmly. She honestly seemed far too composed considering what had just happened.

"Yeah," Yoruichi agreed. "We should do that." She took hold of Grimmjow's upper arm and pulled him along as she hurriedly entered the Garganta. Grimmjow didn't even bother to resist, being far too exhausted after the stunt he just pulled. He let her drag him into the portal, making sure to send Takahashi one last, shit-eating grin just before the rift sealed shut.

* * *

><p>HOLY CRAP IT'S FINALLY DONE. Standing at a little over 12,000 words, this is officially the longest chapter so far, easily beating even chapter 3 which stands at a little over 9000 words right now.<p>

So, seeing how well it turned out the last few dozen times I set a deadline in the AN, I've decided I probably won't be doing it again. And even if I do, it's probably safe to assume that it's a blatant lie.

I'm really liking the current Manga arc. Aside from the Soul Society arc, this one's probably my favorite. Rose's Bankai was pretty cool, but then he had to go and ruin it by **telling his enemy exactly how it worked and how to counter it.** Does that sound familiar to anyone else? Honestly, if Bleach has one major flaw it's this. Well, that and wasting too many panels.

While this came way later than I said it would in last chapter's AN - for which I'm not even going to bother making excuses anymore - at least it focused mostly on Grimmjow as I promised. What happened in the last few paragraphs was actually completely unplanned, but I couldn't resist giving Grimm a Moment of Awesome after he spent so many chapters either in a coma or under house arrest.

Just one more chapter to go for Part 1 of the fic. A good chunk of backstory will finally be explained, and I have some twists planned that will make your jaw hit the floor. There's some scenes that I've been dying to write every since I came up with the idea for the story, so I'm pretty damn pumped for next chapter. Hopefully, you guys are too.

Don't forget to leave a review, and 'til next time!


	10. Final Preparations

**Chapter 10: Final preparations**

"What do you think of Jaegerjaquez-san, Ichigo?"

Ichigo looked up from his schoolwork, startled by the sudden question. "Well... to be honest, I'm not sure what to think." Deciding he had done enough studying for today, Ichigo flipped the textbook shut. It wasn't like he was able to concentrate under these circumstances anyway. In fact, these last few days in which one disaster had quickly followed after another had done little good for his state of mind. Ichigo was under so much stress he'd forgotten to turn in over half of his homework assignments. Miss Ochi was not pleased.

"I mean, he has a really short fuse and he's incredibly rude to boot, but it's a big step up from what he was like during the war." He abandoned the table he'd been working at in favor of joining Urahara at his monitors. That way he would at least have a general idea of what was going on on Yoruichi's side.

One of the monitors showed a map of Hueco Mundo that was centered around three differently colored dots. From what he could see, Yoruichi's group was getting pretty close to their target, meaning that Grimmjow, Yoruichi and Nel were most likely working their way through Takahashi's defenses at the moment.

Almost lazily, Urahara tapped some keys, activating more scanners over in Hueco Mundo. "Really?" Urahara shot Ichigo a disbelieving look. "You're saying this is an _improvement_? But what I meant to ask is whether or not you believe he's dangerous. If he had the chance, do you think he would try to harm you, for example?"

Ichigo thought about it. He was somewhat surprised when he realized that, aside from making some threats, Grimmjow hadn't so much as lifted a finger at him ever since his arrival in the World of the Living. Of course, Ichigo knew perfectly well that Grimmjow not having access to any of his abilities while being kept under close watch by Urahara probably played an important role in keeping him docile.

Yet even so, Ichigo didn't believe that Grimmjow would try to attack, even if he believed he could get away with it.

For one: Grimmjow wouldn't get any enjoyment out of finishing him off when he was defenseless. If he knew the Arrancar at all, then Grimmjow would want to beat him in a fair fight, with both of them going all-out.

Plus, Grimmjow's accidental outburst from when he'd come to his house still lingered in the back of Ichigo's mind. Grimmjow had said that he hadn't been able to forget about the time Ichigo had saved his life. That memory had also been the deciding factor in making Grimmjow come to Ichigo of all people when he was mortally wounded. Did that mean Grimmjow no longer saw him as an enemy? Did Grimmjow, dare he even think it, consider Ichigo to be a friend?

Ichigo barely managed to hold back laughter. The very notion of Grimmjow feeling even the slightest hint of affection for another human being (living or dead) was completely absurd; it was like trying to imagine Ishida without a stick up his ass.

And even if by some strange twist of fate Grimmjow did decide that he wanted a friend, Ichigo suspected he probably wouldn't be Grimmjow's first choice. He was sure that the man resented him, no matter how well Grimmjow was currently behaving. Ichigo had saved his life; not just once, but twice now, and that was something Grimmjow would never forgive him for. Not only had Ichigo soundly defeated him back during the war, he had also shown him mercy. As if that by itself wasn't bad enough, Ichigo had also put his own life on the line to protect him, from his own ally no less. Ichigo couldn't have done a more shameful thing (from Grimmjow's perspective) if he'd tried. Even worse, it meant that Grimmjow owed him.

He certainly wasn't about to thank Ichigo for what he'd done back then, but his sense of honor probably wouldn't let him harm Ichigo either. At least, not until he considered the debt to be paid.

"Kurosaki-san?" Urahara hesitantly spoke up, reminding Ichigo that he was still waiting for an answer.

"No," Ichigo finally said. "He wouldn't try to hurt me, I think. Not unless I provoked him somehow."

Urahara was quiet for a little while. "Do you think of him as a friend?" he asked softly.

"I really don't know what he is to me right now. I'm pretty sure he doesn't think of me as one, at least."

"I see." Urahara didn't say any more, and focused his attention on the screen in front of him again.

Ichigo felt somewhat awkward just sitting there in silence though. He let his eyes wander, taking in all of the strange machinery that the lab contained. Urahara had some basic laboratory equipment down here; stuff like microscopes and Erlenmeyer flasks that any scientist worth his salt should have. On the other hand, Ichigo spotted a jar of clear yellow liquid with eyeballs floating around in it tucked away in between bottles of formaldehyde, and a machine that looked like it came right out of an eighties horror movie not too far from where he was sitting. He didn't even want to begin to imagine what all those drills and needles could possibly be used for.

Impressive and disturbing as all that was though, the thing that spoke to Ichigo's imagination the most had to be the giant, Garganta-creating apparatus that took up an entire length of wall. Ichigo suspected it did far more than just open Gargantas though; after all, Urahara was perfectly capable of opening one without the need for any machinery. Now was as good a time as any to ask for more details, Ichigo figured.

"Urahara, can I ask you something? I've been wondering for a while now, but what does that thing do exactly, aside from the obvious?"

"Ah, so you _were_ curious!" Urahara grinned. By the time Ichigo realized what he was in for, Urahara had already settled back into his crazy shopkeeper routine. "I was starting to fear that my inventions were beginning to lose their allure to you kids." Like a child who had just been given a chance to show off his favorite new toy, Urahara wasted no time in chatting Ichigo up: "Its main function at the most basic level is to open a portal to other dimensions. So far I've only used it to open Garganta to Hueco Mundo, but it can do far more than that. In fact, calling these portals 'Garganta' isn't entirely correct; they're something far more basic than that. If I were to run some more tests, this baby would be able to open gateways into Hell itself!"

Seeing the expression Ichigo made after hearing that latest bit of info quickly had Urahara backpedaling. "I won't, of course," he hastily assured Ichigo. "As a scientist, I'd like nothing more than to experiment to my heart's content, but I won't take major risks like that when the situation doesn't warrant it. The last time I got carried away led to the creation of the Hogyoku and we all know how that ended up..." he shook his head sadly. "No, I know where to draw the line now."

"Anyway," he continued, "there's quite a few advantages to using this machine instead of opening a portal manually. You probably remember how you and the captains were trapped in Hueco Mundo when Aizen forcefully closed all the Garganta, right?" Ichigo nodded. "That won't happen again, not when we're using this baby!" he bragged happily. He sounded like a car dealer trying to make a sale. "Plus, you can be so much more precise location-wise; the maximum deviation is only two and a half centimeters, give or take a few micrometers-"

The computer interrupted Urahara's rant with a harsh beeping sound. "Oh dear," Urahara said, all traces of amusement abruptly gone.

"I take it that's not a good beeping sound?" Ichigo added, already getting a hollow feeling in his stomach.

The monitor now displayed no less than five markers where there should have been only three, along with an error message stating that the signal from the party's communication equipment had been lost.

Takahashi showing up was unfortunate, though not entirely unexpected. Question was, who did the other marker belong to? "Did he bring reinforcements?" Ichigo asked Urahara. "Maybe it's his accomplice, the one who busted him out?"

Urahara looked closely at the map. "I don't think so, Kurosaki-san. It's hard to tell from just this image, but I believe miss Nelliel is talking to to our mystery guest, judging by how close they are to each other. Yoruichi and Grimmjow aren't attacking them either, so I don't believe him or her to be hostile."

"What do we do? Will you go after them?" Urahara already had his trusty cane at the ready, but made no move to leave his post. "Not just yet. I want to see where this goes first. If they decide to make a run for it then my being there would only complicate their escape." He clenched his cane tightly when Yoruichi's marker suddenly shot forward and slammed right into Takahashi's, sending him barreling backwards several meters by the look of it. "Considering how this is unfolding though... you still remember how to operate the equipment, right?" he asked Ichigo rather sheepishly.

"I do, but... wait a second, something's happening." Ichigo pointed at the marker indicating Grimmjow's position, which had begun to blink. The area directly around it changed color, so that a roughly circular zone was now colored electric blue.

"Jaegerjaquez-san is releasing a great amount of energy. He must be preparing to- ah yes. There we go." A cone-shaped area originating from Grimmjow's position and aimed in Takahashi's direction shifted to the same bright blue color on the map. At the same time, Takahashi's marker abruptly began moving away from Grimmjow's at high speed.

Ichigo's jaw dropped. Then, he let out some very nervous-sounding laughter. "Did- did he just hit Takahashi with a Gran Rey Cero?" he asked disbelievingly. More parts of the map turned blue as the cone representing Grimmjow's Cero became wider. "Wow. He's really not holding back, is he?" Urahara calmly remarked, in a tone one would normally use when discussing the weather, for instance.

Apparently Grimmjow had finally run of juice, seeing how the high-energy readings on the map disappeared. The computer needed a little time afterward to literally redraw parts of the map after the Gran Rey Cero had decimated the area, leaving a good part of Hueco Mundo permanently scarred. Somewhere around the center of the devastation, Takahashi's marker was still visible though.

Ichigo needed a minute to find his voice. "He, uh, he's actually pretty durable, isn't he?" He managed to get out. Takahashi had tanked a Gran Rey Cero from Grimmjow at full power? Ichigo wondered how the bastard had pulled that off. "Hey, where did everyone go?" The other four markers had promptly disappeared from the map while Ichigo was still dumbfounded.

Urahara was about to say something, but stopped in favor of looking up at the ceiling. There was a pensive expression on his face. "Aha!" he said a few seconds later, as if having a Eureka-moment. "A Garganta just opened on ground level, just outside the barrier protecting the shop. I assume Yoruichi's group will be coming through it momentarily. Let's go check on them, shall we?"

Ichigo let out a relieved sigh. At least this mission hadn't ended in disaster, like the last one. Now he just hoped none of them had gotten injured too badly in that scuffle. Who knew, maybe they had even managed to obtain some information? Ichigo followed Urahara outside, eager to see everyone again. Even Grimmjow, he absently noted. Maybe he was starting to grow on him?

* * *

><p>He had underestimated that blue-haired Arrancar. Even worse, this was already the second time in a row that he'd made that mistake. Granted, the first time couldn't really be helped, considering neither he <em>or <em>Hyperion had been in control at the time. That disastrous first attempt at using Resurrección had thrown all of his plans into complete disarray. It was a small miracle he was still breathing after barging into Soul Society while being so utterly unprepared.

Still, the power that Arrancar- Grimmjow, he remembered Yoruichi calling him- had displayed was very impressive to say the least. "That technique," Katsumi started, seemingly talking to himself, "do you know what it was?" Technically, he _was_ talking to himself, he supposed. Even so, it didn't take long before he got an answer.

"**I've never seen a Cero like that before," **a voice replied. **"I didn't think it was possible to concentrate that much energy into a relatively small beam. Still, it was pretty obvious he was overexerting himself. I could tell he was barely managing to control it near the end."**

Katsumi let out a derisive snort. "He'd better have been overexerting himself. He sent me barreling across half the damn desert." The trench that he'd dug in the sand while trying to shield himself from the attack bore testament to that.

"**I told you to use Resurrección," **Hyperion nagged at him for what was probably the hundredth time in the last five minutes.

"You know, you're really starting to sound like a broken record," Katsumi berated him. "I wasn't going to use that much power just to fight off three morons who had simply gotten too curious for their own good." He still felt a pang of hurt when he recalled the icy look Yoruichi had given him. Any affection she might have once had for him was long gone now. To think she used to be one of the very few true friends he'd had among the members of the Gotei. Ukitake and Kyoraku were easy to get along with, but they had been more like father figures, or even like a pair of fun uncles to him. Yoruichi had been the only captain in his age group (mentally, at least) that he had been close to. It might have become something more than friendship in time, but his death sentence and the subsequent slew of events had quickly put a stop to that.

"**So, should we try replicating that Cero?" **Hyperion's voice quickly snapped Katsumi out of his reveries. "No," he decided firmly. "We're not even sure if that attack _can _be replicated in the first place. Besides, we don't have any time to waste."

He'd finally made it all the way back to Las Noches' outer wall. It had been one interruption after the other today. First there had been that Arrancar scout who had gotten closer to Katsumi's little 'project' than he felt comfortable with. His original plan had been to simply dispose of the intruder, a decision Hyperion had heartily supported, but he had eventually decided that getting information out of the unfortunate soul would be more beneficial in the long run.

As it turned out, sparing his life had indeed been a wise choice: at least now he knew why there was a castle the size of a small country in the middle of Hueco Mundo's desert. That bastard Aizen had screwed pretty much everyone over in order to become a god. Aizen's betrayal was also the root cause of the emergence of so many Arrancar. Those had long fled the fortress by now though, after his little 'episode' a few days back.

"**If we're not going to try copying that technique, what do you suggest we do instead?" **his inner Hollow cut in once again. **"I _could_ always teach you some more of my tricks..." **Hyperion whispered innocently. Katsumi laughed out loud; the bastard wasn't even trying to be subtle anymore.

"Right. You give me some more of your power, and I give you a little more of my sanity, is that it?"

The sound of Hyperion's eerie, twisted laugh reverberated inside his skull. **"Don't you think it's a fair exchange? You get what you want ****in cash****, but I'm just buying stock. You're still the majority shareholder."**

"Yes, but for how long, I wonder? Having access to your abilities won't do me much good if I have to hand over the keys to my mind and body."

"**Aw, don't you trust me, King?" **Katsumi knew he was being mocked now. The Hollow had already won, and they both knew it. All Hyperion had to do was to be patient for just a little while longer before he could claim his prize. It would be ripe for the picking soon enough. **"I'd never stand in the way of your goal, King. In fact, if it does come to that, I'd be more than willing to finish the job myself," **he teased.

Katsumi halted at a seemingly random location. It looked as dull and featureless here as it did at any other stretch of desert, but to him, this was the most important location in the world right now. "You won't have to," Katsumi replied to the demon inside of him as he lifted his hand and made a vague gesture, as if drawing a symbol in the air. Right in front of him space began to warp. "I'm doing it tomorrow."

The cloaking field melted away before his eyes. This was the second one of its kind he'd created in this desert, and this one had been a rush job. Compared to the original, it was vastly inferior. Someone familiar with illusions would no doubt be able to spot it, and the spell was already starting to degrade after less than a full day of being active. It didn't matter though. After tomorrow, he wouldn't be needing it anymore.

Katsumi walked inside of the now-transparent bubble, and reactivated the cloaking field once he was inside. He was standing in the center of a massive, circular slab of smooth stone. An incredibly complicated diagram was etched into its surface, and five tablets made from the same material loomed over him. The tablets stood at the very edge of the stone circle, each of them separated from its two neighbors by the exact same distance, marking the five points of a pentagram.

"**So it's finished, then?"**

"Having to relocate it so quickly made things a lot more difficult, but yes, it's finished." He started walking, tracing the outer edge of the circle and closely inspecting every tablet as he passed it. They were all the exact same shape and material, but each carried different engravings, and different spells. It had to be absolutely perfect. "Yama-ji's not gonna know what hit him."

In the back of his mind, Hyperion was cackling madly, but for once Katsumi wasn't annoyed with it. Tomorrow, he'd be able to sleep peacefully. That prospect alone was enough to help him tune out his other self.

He gathered up the mattress and blanket he'd found within the abandoned fortress and quickly made an improvised bed on top of the smooth stone. After stripping down to his underwear and folding up what was left of his Soul Reaper uniform, he slipped under the covers.

Lying in the center of an exact replica of his former prison, Katsumi closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep, smiling to himself contentedly.

* * *

><p>"You guys sure like to cut it close, don't you?" Ichigo received a chorus of groans and mumbled replies that he couldn't even clearly make out from the Hueco Mundo expedition team. Yoruichi's group had re-entered the world of the living a small distance away from the shop. Nelliel had, in the heat of the moment, opened a Garganta to get out of Hueco Mundo, but it was impossible to open a portal anywhere inside of Urahara's house, except when Urahara himself was the one opening it of course. They'd been forced to walk the rest of the way back, and had all gone straight to Grimmjow's room to rest and recuperate.<p>

"Can't talk. Tired," was the only part of Yoruichi's reply Ichigo could understand. She'd flopped down on a pile of cushions and wasn't showing any signs of moving anytime soon. Grimmjow clearly wasn't too happy about her taking up temporary residence in his room, going by the death glares he was periodically sending her way. Luckily for them, his earlier usage of the Gran Rey Cero had left him unable to do so much as lift a finger, so glaring was all he was going to be doing for a while.

Nelliel was the only one out of the Hueco Mundo party to remain somewhat dignified. She had taken a seat at the table, received a cold drink from Tessai, and was calmly filling him and Urahara in about what had happened. The Arrancar they had brought with them had been bandaged up and was now resting on one of the spare futons.

Ichigo crouched down next to Grimmjow's futon. "You're bleeding," he remarked. The Espada's sheets already had a big red spot on them, and more blood was steadily trickling from the cut in his hand.

Grimmjow lazily opened a single eye, gave Ichigo a look that couldn't have held less interest, and closed it again. "Just a scratch. It'll heal."

Considering he was in his spirit form, Ichigo figured he was probably right about that. That wasn't an excuse to continue losing blood until it did however. Deciding to disregard Grimmjow's opinion, Ichigo went to claim the first-aid kit from the unfamiliar Arrancar's bedside and got to work on Grimmjow's injury.

"Kurosaki. What are you doing?" At least he was paying attention now, Ichigo figured, as he put some surgical paper on his lap and Grimmjow's hand on top of that. "Treating your hand, obviously. You may want to get your eyesight checked out too."

"What are you, my mother? Piss off," the big blue lug weakly tried to protest. He was too tired to put any real effort into it. Ichigo was proud of himself for not taking the bait and getting into another bitch-off with Grimmjow. He grabbed onto the man's wrist when Grimmjow attempted to withdraw his arm and firmly placed it palm-side up on his own thighs. "Quit being a baby and let me concentrate," he admonished Grimmjow while pouring a bit of diluted hydrogen peroxide in the open wound. "Oh, this is gonna sting by the way," he added as an afterthought.

Ichigo was instantly rewarded with a litany of curses. Hydrogen peroxide wasn't the best antiseptic out there, but it was fantastic at getting small foreign objects- in this case, grains of sand- out of wounds quickly since it started bubbling like crazy once it got on your skin. It did have the rather unpleasant side effects of stinging like a motherfucker, and causing minor damage to the areas treated with it.

Ichigio wiped away the bloody foam that had formed with a clean piece of cloth and inspected the cut itself. "If you were a human, you'd need stitches. You cut yourself really deep." He took out some bandages from the medical kit. "But considering your natural healing abilities, I'll just bandage it up as it is." A hand was probably the easiest body part to wrap a bandage around. If needed, you could use the spaces between two fingers as places to anchor the bandage to. He didn't even need to really think about what he was doing; he'd had plenty of practice at his father's clinic. Like with riding a bike, you eventually just switched on the autopilot for tasks like that. "Done. Can you use your hand easily like that? It's not too tight?"

Deciding to be cooperative for once, Grimmjow clenched his fingers a couple of times to test. "Works fine." Now that he was finally allowed to do so, Grimmjow drew his arm back and rolled over so he wasn't facing Ichigo anymore. "Now do me a favor will you?"

"What?" Ichigo inquired carefully, already fairly sure of what Grimmjow was about to ask. "Leave me the fuck alone. I'm gonna sleep for a week or so. If the shopkeeper needs me, tell him to shove it." True to his word, he was out like a light in mere moments.

It wasn't like Ichigo had been expecting a 'thank you' or anything of the sort, yet Grimmjow's attitude still kind of pissed him off. "You're welcome, asshole." The other man wasn't responding anymore, sleep having already claimed him. Ichigo sighed, and started gathering up the equipment he'd used to treat Grimmjow.

_Another failed reconnaissance mission, _Ichigo mused to himself. At least this one hadn't turned out to be an utter catastrophe like the last one. No one has gotten seriously injured or captured. In fact, when the expedition team had returned there had even been a surplus of members. The injured Arrancar they'd brought with them was one of the 'citizens' of Haven, the encampment under Tia Hallibel's control where most of the former Las Noches residents had currently settled. He had admitted to telling Takahashi the location of Haven, but Nelliel didn't seem too worried about the issue.

She had consulted Urahara and Yoruichi for advice on the matter, and all of them had agreed that Haven had very little chance of coming under attack. Takahashi had made it abundantly clear that Soul Society, more specifically Yamamoto, was his target. He'd be a fool to try and take on the Arrancar at the same time, especially when doing so didn't offer him any sort of benefit. Ichigo had to admit he was rather curious about this Haven of theirs. Once he got his powers back, he could ask Nel if she would let him see it for himself. For now though, there were other things he needed to worry about.

* * *

><p><em>His screams resounded throughout the village, yet its slumbering inhabitants remained deaf to his cries. His bare feet were bloody from running along the dirt roads for so long. His lungs were burning. His heart beat faster than it had ever done in life, his throat was raw from screaming and the pain in his chest was an unbearable agony.<em>

_Cling, cling._

_The chain attached to his chest rattled loudly as he ran. He'd seen this type of chain plenty of times before. The spirits at the temple had also had them. The Chain of Fate, they called it. They said that when theirs got too short, they willingly sought out a Shinigami to take them to the afterlife. 'The alternative was much worse,' they had always told him when questioned on the matter. And now, Katsumi knew what it was that had scared them even more than leaving behind the material world forever._

"_**Run boy, run!" **a twisted voice called out, mocking him. The demon was clearly enjoying itself, watching Katsumi slowly break down._

_Perhaps the worst thing of all was that he had known the man. The monster chasing him now used to be the kind old man who had always sat at the foot of the temple's sole cherry blossom tree. Katsumi had gotten along well with him. The man's biggest character flaw however, was that he had been stubborn as a mule. He refused to listen when the other spirits told him to seek out a Shinigami, convinced he still had plenty of time left._

_And now everyone was gone. Every single spirit who had lived at the temple, Katsumi's family, all of them consumed by the kind, stubborn old man._

"_**Hahahaha!" **He hated that laughter. It was malicious, mocking, twisted, and WRONG. Katsumi wanted it to stop. It had to _stop!

_The wounds it had inflicted throbbed. The Hollow had decided to play a game with him. After he'd knocked Katsumi's spirit out of his body, he had roughly grabbed him up in his clawed hands, ripping open his chest and back. While he'd been holding him, he had gleefully pinched off Katsumi's Chain of Fate as close to his chest as he could reach._

_Cling, cling._

_Only two links were left. Not five minutes ago there had still been three, but the links seemed to think that eating each other was just buckets of fun. The process shouldn't be going this fast. Even if his Chain was severed and he was for all intents and purposes dead, the transformation into a Hollow shouldn't be going this fast._

_There were however, quite a few factors working against Katsumi at the moment. For one, spending the night running for his life wasn't exactly a stress-free activity. Stress greatly sped up the Chain's deterioration, as he'd observed for himself with the spirits at the temple._

_Secondly, he'd gotten slashed by the Hollow's claws. A Hollow's touch was poison. When the Hollow actually broke your skin and the poison got into your system... that wasn't good. The area around his wounds had turned a sickening purple. So sickening in fact, he'd been wanting to throw up his guts all night. Though that may have been because of the poison running through his veins, rather than the sight of his wounds. The 'virus' that monster had injected him with was doing one hell of a job hurrying along his own transformation into an abomination._

_And lastly there was the simple fact that he'd only had three links to begin with. The last links always degraded the fastest, sometimes even all at once._

_If Katsumi had been an ordinary human he would never have lasted this long. However, he had spent the last five years living among and communicating with the spirits at the temple. Being around them for so long, talking to them, touching them, had greatly increased his own spiritual abilities. What's more: the spirits had taken the time to teach him some tricks._

_Focusing on the latent power dwelling deep within his soul, Katsumi drew out some energy, gathered it up into a ball in his hand, and blindly threw it at his pursuer, not having the time to turn around and aim properly._

_A surprised groan let him know he'd hit his mark. The powers he had at his disposal as a spirit medium were the only thing preventing his Chain from eroding instantly. The monks at the temple had been overjoyed when someone with such a high natural affinity for Spiritual matters had simply shown up at their doorstep one day. For them, it had been a lucky break. For Katsumi, it had been his final option, aside from becoming a beggar or thief. Where else was an orphaned child supposed to go?_

_Even so, he couldn't hold it back forever, especially not now that he was infected with the Hollow virus, but he sure as hell wasn't going down without a fight._

_He ducked into a narrow alleyway. The Hollow, temporarily blinded by the blast, thundered right past it. Katsumi sunk to his knees, using the wall as support. He'd been running for hours. He involuntarily thought about the state his physical body must be in by now. It was still pretty hot out at night this time of year. In this temperature, decomposition must have hurried along nicely. Someone was bound to notice the stench in the morning. There would probably be a major panic when the villagers discovered the bodies of himself and the monks._

_Then again, why would he still even **want **his BODY? He wAS so **mu**ch more POW**ERFUL now!**_

"_Ah!" He tipped over forward, and was now on his hands and knees. Something was crawling throughout his body, changing it, twisting it; **improving it!**_

"_No! No, no, no! Not now, not yet..." he moaned._

"_**Give in!"**_

"_No... no, I ca- URGH!" His stomach forcefully contracted, forcing its meager contents out of his system. He'd eaten a rather sober dinner last night, but that obviously hadn't made the migration to his Spiritual body. All that came out were stomach juices and blood. Even though there was nothing left in his stomach, his abdomen continued to convulse painfully._

_A terrible pressure was building inside of his skull. He couldn't stop retching, and his vision was going blurry. In a time span of just a few minutes, he had gone completely blind in his right eye, and his left was steadily losing its light as well._

_Something was trickling out of his right eye socket. Gods his head hurt so bad._

**_"Just give in. It won't hurt anymore if you do." _**_The voice tried to reason with him, almost sounding gentle despite the twisted tone it had._

"_No..." he muttered weakly. The dry heaving just wouldn't stop. There was nothing left for him to throw up, all it did was exhaust him further. Was he crying? He wouldn't be surprised if he was. It felt like something was trickling down his cheek, at least. Out of curiosity, Katsumi wiped it away and looked at his hand. Some thick, white liquid was on it. "What the- ah!" There was no time to freak out about that new development. The pain in his chest had increased tenfold. It felt like someone had reached inside his chest cavity and was now raking over the insides with razor-sharp nails. __He could just make out the disturbing sight of the meager remnants of his Chain eating themselves and leaving behind a big black hole in his body. He retched again. No blood this time. Only white came out, no red._

_More of the stuff came trickling out of his mouth, his ears, his nose, even out of his tear glands. He couldn't see at all anymore. Nor hear, smell or taste for that matter. The only sense he had left was touch, and right now, the only sensation his nervous system seemed to be registering was pain._

"_**Give in," **the words came once again. He didn't actually hear them, so much as feel them reverberate throughout his skull. Would doing so make the pain stop? Katsumi weakly uttered some random, incomprehensible syllables. He was physically and mentally exhausted. His mind, and his feeble resistance with it, was nearly gone. "**I... I don't... I want... YE- **NO!" His body convulsed again, making him cry out in pain. He realized he was lying on his back now. The wetness he felt on the back of his head let him know he was rolling around in his own bloody vomit. The white stuff leaking out of every orifice on his head had now covered his face completely. It seemed to be solidifying. Would that be how it ended? Was he going to choke to death on some white slob? Not exactly the most glorious or heroic of deaths._

_Even so, it seemed that by denying the voice what it wanted, Katsumi had at least managed to regain some degree of control over himself. At the very least, he wanted to die while he was still himself. If he turned into a Hollow and joined the old man in this mad slaughter_ _, Katsumi would never be able to forgive himself, no matter what sort of afterlife or reincarnation cycle he ended up in._

_For all the good it did him in his current state, he could hear again, and even move around a little. It didn't matter much. He was dying. His body had reached its limit. It would all be over soon. But then... wHy was he contin**uin**g to fight this? All it brOugHt him was **pain**. GiviNG **in **wAs SO **mu**ch **easIEr, there would be no more pain, he could sleep peacefully forever-"** Before he realized what was happening, the demon inside had already taken hold of his mind again. It clearly wasn't planning on giving up. And this time, it just might have won. In the few seconds Katsumi had stopped struggling, when he had felt death- true, permanent death- coming, the Hollow had broken through his final defenses. Katsumi's mind, the one thing he'd managed to hold on to until now, was no longer his own._

"_Don't give up!"_

_Everything halted. That voice... where did it come from? There should be only himself and **his** voice here. Why was there another voice? He didn't understand. The entire world consisted of just him, the voice in his head, and the constant, unending pain. Why was there a third voice? He didn't understand. He didn't- he did- he-_

SLAP!

_Something had hit the side of his head, hard__. It stung. That pain was new too._

"_Snap out of it! You have to fight back!" There was pressure on his shoulders. Were they his shoulders though? Or were they **his**? He couldn't remember._

"_I- I **ha**VE to **FiGH**t?" Katsumi croaked out. Gods he sounded pathetic._

"_Yes!" The pressure on his shoulders increased. He could feel his (**his?**) body being shaken around. "You have to fight! You have to!" __Katsumi's broken, violated mind struggled with this revolutionary new idea. "Oka**Y," **he whispered soflty.** "I- **I **wIl**l- I'll try."_

_No sooner had he uttered those words than the assault on his mind and body begun anew. His head felt like someone was hammering a burning hot rod into his skull. _

"_**GIVE IN,"** the voice commanded, forcefully this time. That was new: up until now the voice had been kind and tempting, it had promised Katsumi blissful nothingness in exchange for giving in to its demands. The thing inside of him was getting desperate._

"_No," Katsumi breathed out. The demon was losing its grasp on his mind. This wasn't **his **body. His body was his own, and that vile creature had no claim to it._

"_**GIVE IN!" **it screeched desperately; the sound it made was horrific. Nothing on earth could have made a sound like that. It was vile, demonic, just plain _wrong.

_Katsumi clenched his teeth. "No!" Through sheer force of will, he urged his body to move. As he struggled to sit upright, he could feel the hands on his shoulders moving to support his back. The creature within him was raging, trying to hurt him, trying to break free... but Katsumi wouldn't let it. He had become deaf to its cries._

"_You're doing great," the voice said, which Katsumi was now conscious enough to realize was distinctly female. "I need you to listen to me very carefully. You can push it back. You're strong enough to do that. It's faint right now, but I can sense a source of Spirit Energy deep within you."_

_It was difficult to understand her. Not just because of the mind rape he was presently undergoing, but because his ear canals were filled with the white goop that was still leaking out of his head. Combine that with the blood and stomach juices he'd been lying in and he must have made one hell of an unpleasant sight._

"_What I need you to do, is draw out that power," she continued. "This is your only chance. If you let that thing win, you will become a Hollow, and I will be forced to kill you. You can never become an ordinary human again either, but there is another option. If you resist the transformation into a Hollow, and tap into the power you have within you, you can become a Shinigami."_

_A God of Death? Was she kidding him right now? Here he was, white stuff leaking out of his head, partially lying in his own bloody vomit, his mind so badly screwed up by the demon or whatever was inside of him that he couldn't even count to ten without help, and here this woman was telling him to become a freaking GOD?_

_Well, why the fuck not?_

_He reached out for this power of his. He had done it plenty of times before, when trying out the techniques the spirits had taught him. This time however, he wasn't trying to focus the power into a ball like he'd done before. He wasn't planning on doing _anything _with it, really. She'd told him to tap into it, so he was damn well gonna tap into it like there was no tomorrow._

"_Oh!" She let out a surprised gasp. Katsumi felt her letting go of him. Under his own power, he managed to get back on his hands and knees. The energy was wildly flowing throughout his body. He was drawing upon it without any real purpose in mind, so the excess power was being released, rather violently, into the air around him._

"_You're doing great!" she called out to him from, he noted, a respectable distance. He'd thought so too, but it was nice to get some affirmation. He may have been doing a little too well, in fact. More and more energy flowed out from the 'source' he had in his chest, which was strange considering there was now a big damn hole there. He couldn't hold it back anymore, even if he'd wanted to._

_He forced himself to sit upright. He was breathing heavily. His body felt incredibly hot, but it wasn't such a bad sensation compared to what he'd been subjected to earlier on._

_The power was overflowing. This was it. He was either going to burn himself out or destroy his own body from the inside out. He could vaguely see light. Perhaps it was true what they said about 'going to the light' when you died? The light grew brighter, so much so that Katsumi had to clench his eyes shut. The Hollow inside of him let out another terrible, mournful screech. It had failed._

_And then, it was over. Nothing was happening anymore. The light faded away._

"_Congratulations. You did it." Katsumi opened his eyes, and found himself looking up at the night sky. Disbelievingly, he looked around the alley. Everything was still the same, aside from the fact that it looked like a small bomb had gone off where he was sitting._

_His body weighed like lead. He imagined this was how a steak would feel after being tenderized. Even so, he was still alive- err.. still dead. The good kind of dead, at least._

_Thump_

_Something had fallen off of his face. Inspecting the item more closely, he discovered it was a mask. A really creepy, bone-white mask with five nasty-looking spikes that reached back toward the wearers head. Was that what the white goop had turned into? He raised a fist and crashed it into the damn thing. The mask shattered into a dozen pieces. His hand hurt like hell but Katsumi felt it was worth it. _ _He became vaguely aware of someone's presence at his side._

_"You okay?" _ _He looked up._

_So that's what she looked like. The girl had long, thick auburn hair and big brown eyes. She was wearing a black Shihakusho and matching Hakama. She also had a very big sword hanging at her side, which would have probably worried him under normal circumstances. Considering she had come to save him though, he figured she probably wouldn't be using it on him._

"_Yeah... I'm fine. Normally I'd say 'I'll live', but that's not very likely, is it?"_

_She smiled at him. "My name is Aoi. Aoi Watanabe. I'm the Soul Reaper assigned to this district."_

"_Katsumi," he introduced himself in turn. "Katsumi Takahashi."_

"_Can you stand?" She proceeded to help him up. "I wouldn't give up on living just yet, if I were you."_

_"What do you mean?" His spirit had been knocked out of his body and his Chain of Fate had been cut and later eaten... by itself. Katsumi figured he was pretty dead._

"_You're a Soul Reaper now," she explained. "You should be able to reclaim your physical body, provided it's still in somewhat decent shape. As long as you still have your body, you're not truly dead... though you won't be truly alive, either."_

"_But... I've been dead for hours. My body's had the whole night to start decomposing."_

_Aoi shook her head calmly. "I know healing Kido- a form of Soul Reaper magic, so to speak. If the decomposition is not too far along, I should still be able to reverse the damage your body has sustained. I doubt I'll need to do much though. As I said before, you're a Soul Reaper now. All you need to do is get back in your body, and it should start healing on its own," she calmly explained. Katsumi couldn't do anything but gape at her. "Perks of being a Death God," she shrugged._

_The relief that flooded through him was too intense for words. He almost fell back down again. The rest of the night, and for several days following his ordeal, Katsumi couldn't stop smiling._

_The old man who had turned into a Hollow had been released from his torment by Aoi. Unfortunately, she had come too late to save the other spirits who had lived at the temple. They had all been consumed. The good news was that by slaying the Hollow that had consumed them, they too had been set free and sent on to the afterlife. Besides, people would keep dying. Eventually a new community of wandering souls would form at the temple grounds. The dead monks proved to be a lot harder to replace. Including Katsumi himself, there were a grand total of three survivors._

_Aoi had been speaking the truth. When they'd arrived at the scene of Katsumi's 'murder', all he had to do was pop back into his body and it had fixed itself up in mere minutes. She didn't even need to use any Kido. Ev__ery so often after that, she came to talk to him and teach him some Kido, since 'he didn't have his own Zanpakuto and needed to be able to protect himself', according to her. She kept his existence a secret from her superiors. From what she told him, a still-living human gaining the powers of a Shinigami was a grave violation of Soul Society's laws and both of them would be punished severely if the truth were to come to light._

_It wasn't until much later that Katsumi would realize just how much Aoi had stuck her neck out for him. By the time Katsumi would learn of how twisted a place Soul Society truly was underneath the shining, magnificent front the Seireitei put up, it would already be too late to save her._

* * *

><p>He opened his eyes. It had been a long time since he'd thought about that night. His first 'meeting' with Hyperion. More importantly, his first meeting with Aoi.<p>

"**Did ya have a nice dream, King?"** Hyperion asked mockingly. It was hard to be sure if he was really mocking him, or just making conversation. It was just how he always talked.

With how much control he'd handed over to the demon, Katsumi wouldn't be surprised if the bastard had seen the dream too. Hell, maybe he was the one who induced it in the first place, as some sort of sick joke. It wouldn't surprise him in the least. The really surprising part was how little he found himself caring about any of that.

"It was alright," he replied noncommittally. "Very nostalgic." He got up, stretched, and began his habitual morning inspection of the Seal and the cloaking field that kept it hidden.

The Seal, as expected, was in perfect condition. It was his masterpiece. He'd started working on it almost immediately after he broke out of the original version, and spent several days meticulously applying every layer of enchantments. The cloaking field however, had only about twenty hours left before it would break down according to his estimations. That didn't really matter though. It had just about served its purpose.

"**You all done with the preparations?" **Hyperion chimed in again. "Yes. I have everything I need. All that's left is to put out some bait to keep those guys in Karakura busy." He removed his undergarments and put on some of the clean ones he'd found in one of the fortress' laundry rooms earlier. Clean underwear became quite the luxury item when you were an escaped convict. "They could become a major pain in our ass if they decide to stick their nose in my affairs again."

"**No need to worry, King. I thought you some neat tricks, didn't I? You can take them, easy."**

Already being talked to like a pet, was he? Well, he should probably be getting used to it. He could just try to off himself after dealing with Yamamoto in order to spare himself the embarrassment, but he doubted Hyperion would let him succeed. No, this was just something he was going to have live with.

Quickly throwing on the rags and tatters that used to be his uniform, along with a cloak he'd found lying around, he stepped outside of his barrier and closed it again behind him.

His mind was made up. He'd been hurt many times over the course of his life. Aoi's death was something he would never be able to put behind him completely. As for Yamamoto's betrayal, that was a fresh wound. From his perspective, anyway. Time inside Izanagi's Seal passed quite slowly compared to the outside world, and he'd been unconscious for the majority of it.

Once he took his revenge on Yamamoto, he'd have some form of closure. Sure, there were many other loose ends he'd be leaving behind, but that was only natural. There weren't many people who were lucky enough to die with all their affairs in order. Katsumi wasn't planning on dying, but becoming a prisoner of his own mind was close enough in his opinion. He had passed the point of caring though. He was tired. So very, very tired. And tonight, he'd finally be able to rest.

He made sure his Zanpakuto, his most trusted friend and partner, was properly attached to its sash. He was ready. "Alright, you two," he spoke to the other parts of his soul: his inner strength, and his inner demon. "Let's put an end to this."

* * *

><p>AN: Whew, it's been a while.

This chapter was supposed to end the first part of the fic, but once again things didn't go exactly as planned. In fact, it may not be until chapter 12 that I'll be able to wrap up the 'Darkening Skies' arc. It depends on how things go from here.

The good news is that I'm mostly done with exposition for now. This chapter had Ichigo talking about his current feelings in regards to Grimmjow, along with some interaction between the two. Urahara's portal device got some explanation, and Katsumi got some of his backstory revealed, as well as what he's currently plotting. After this, we can jump right into the action starting with the next chapter. Quite a few fights are coming up, along with a pretty major change in direction for the story.

I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say this: Pretty soon, Katsumi will be the least of Ichigo and the others' worries. Speaking of spoilers, the next chapter will contain a relatively minor one for those who haven't read the early chapters of the Blood War arc. Nothing plot-related though, and I'm pretty sure most people already know about it. As a sidenote, I've decided to stop reading the Bleach Manga for now since all the new reveals and plot twists in the Blood War arc made me depressed because lots of things I was planning to do no longer make sense with what we know now.

Now then, I have an early start tomorrow, so I'll wrap this up here. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, even though half of it was talking and the other half was one big flashback. Exposition chapters are a necessary evil I'm afraid. 'Till next time!

PS: Don't forget to review! Nothing make me happier than reading you guys' thoughts on the story!


	11. Invasion

**Chapter 11: Invasion**

All the way up on the roof of his favorite skyscraper, Katsumi found he had an excellent overview of Karakura Town. He'd been camped out there for the better part of the morning. During that time, he had learned that much more was going on in this city than what met the eye. Not only did Yoruichi and some other familiar faces live here now, but there was another, separate group of Soul Reapers that had set up a secret base in the area.

Frustratingly enough, he still hadn't managed to discern its location. The only reason he even knew they had to be here was because he could periodically sense some very faint, suppressed Reiatsu coming from somewhere on ground level. The building they used as a hideout was a complete unknown to him. Whoever had created the barrier that hid it from the eyes of the public must have been highly skilled. If even Katsumi couldn't detect, let alone see through the barrier, then said person must have either been very close to or even above his own skill level when it came to Kido. Either that, or they had used a unique ability that Katsumi couldn't figure out the workings of.

"This could be problematic," he muttered to himself. If there were this many powerful Shinigami milling about in town, he was going to need a far bigger distraction in order to keep them all busy. As it stood, he already had Kisuke Urahara, Tessai Tsukabishi (_the freaking ex-Kido Corps commander!_), Yoruichi, the Arrancar named Grimmjow, a bunch of kids he didn't know the names of, and gods knew how many other Captain-class Shinigami to deal with now. What the hell was _wrong_ with this town?!

There was _some _good news at least: his arm had finally finished healing. Yamamoto had done some serious damage; even his Hierro had melted and burned when faced with the hellfire that man commanded. Underestimating the old man would be a fatal mistake. Just having both his arms functional again wasn't going to be anywhere near enough to stand up to the strongest Shinigami who ever lived.

Hyperion snickered, clearly not sharing his worries. **"Do ya need some help, King?"**

Katsumi clenched his teeth, already getting annoyed with the Hollow's mannerisms. "No, I can handle this myself just fi-" he paused. Why was he refusing? After all, he had nothing to lose anymore. If he was going to fight Yamamoto he would need all the power Hyperion had to offer, which meant that at the end of the day he'd be giving up his body to the Hollow anyway. Why not have him make himself useful for once? Hell, he was even offering.

"Alright," Katsumi whimsically spoke up. "Why don't you show me what you can do?"

It remained silent in his head for a second or two. **"Really? I honestly didn't think you'd say yes. ****But hey; your wish is my command." **An image of the Hollow bowing in a very exaggerated manner involuntarily popped up in his head.** "****Gimme control for a second, would you ****King****?"**

While it had sounded like a question, Hyperion didn't bother to wait around for Katsumi's permission. Before he knew what was happening, his body had already stopped responding to his commands. Hyperion wasn't one to waste time; he immediately put on his Hollow mask, and began raising their Reiatsu to absurdly high levels. So much for stealth.

"What are you doing?!" Katsumi furiously demanded. A chill went through him when he realized _he _was now the one speaking into their shared mind rather than with his actual vocal cords.

"**I'm helping!" **the bastard gleefully replied. He continued to channel more energy, causing it all to build up around his throat, lungs, as well as said vocal chords. Right away, Katsumi realized what he was doing.

With a sound unlike anything a creature on Earth could have replicated, Hyperion let out a terrible, demonic shriek that echoed throughout the city. It was fortunate the average person wouldn't be able to hear it. That would have caused quite a stir.

"**There ya go, King! You can take it from here, can't ya? Have fun~!"** The way he'd sang the word 'fun' made Katsumi want to punch him. Unfortunately, doing so would be rather counterproductive. Shared body and all that.

Hyperion voluntarily handed the controls back over to Katsumi - this time, at least - who shook his head to reorient himself. Having your body taken for a joyride felt _weird._

He looked up at the sky, which had already begun to darken ominously. While he had been planning on using Hollow bait to lure some of the corrupted spirits here and keep Karakura's little defense force occupied, he hadn't intended to start a major invasion. Just a few dozen run-off-the-mill, garden variety Hollows would have sufficed. Maybe a single Menos Grande for good measure. Yes, that would have done nicely. What Hyperion had set in motion just now however, was going to make an attack by a Menos Grande look like a freaking tea party.

The first portals were already beginning to open up in the sky. Katsumi hurriedly created one of his own, not intending to stick around for when the shit hit the fan. He made sure to take his bag with him before he left. Once he arrived in Soul Society, he was going to need that stuff if he didn't want to be discovered the second he set foot in the Seireitei.

Still... he genuinely hoped he'd been right in assessing the fighting power of Karakura's resident Shinigami. If not, then this town was _fucked._

* * *

><p>"What the hell was that?!" It was Tatsuki who spoke up first. Miss Ochi interrupted her lecture about English verb conjugations in order to reprimand her. "Miss Arisawa! Mind your language while in class, please!"<p>

"I heard it too, Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime cut the woman off. "What was that? It gave me the chills!"

Chad and Uryu both turned around to look at Ichigo, signaling that they had heard it as well. Even Mizuiro, Keigo and Chizuru were searching for the origin of that awful screech. The other, less Spiritually gifted students were muttering among themselves in confusion, wondering what they were talking about. The fact that the rest of the class hadn't been able to hear it only confirmed Ichigo's suspicions.

Miss Ochi, being accustomed to all the crazy things that seemed to happen around Ichigo and his friends by now, took all this in stride. "I didn't hear anything, though. Now, might I please continue, miss Arisawa?" She was just about to continue the lesson when the light from outside suddenly diminished in intensity. A blanket of dark gray clouds formed unusually quickly. "That's strange. The weather report said it wouldn't rain today..." the teacher muttered curiously.

"I have to go to the bathroom!" Ichigo called out to miss Ochi, leaving his stuff behind and dashing out of the classroom before she could reply. Something was obviously very, very wrong here. Chad, Uryu and Orihime hastily made similar poor excuses and followed him out into the hallway. A lesser teacher than miss Ochi probably would have broken down crying after all the times this had happened. That woman had the patience of a Saint. Either that, or she just wasn't a very responsible teacher.

"Where are we going, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked. It was strange how the others still tended to think of him as the leader of their group, in spite of his current, less-than-useful state. "To Urahara's!" he replied. "Something big is going down, and I have a feeling it won't be good!"

Once they were out on the streets, it became all the more clear just how bad the situation was. Dozens of portals leading to Hueco Mundo opened up in the sky, and a veritable army of lesser Hollows came pouring through. Their numbers increased rapidly, going from a just a few dozen to hundreds in less than a minute. The giant, vertical cracks that began to form at various locations around town signaled that a bunch of Menos Grande would soon be joining in on the activities as well.

"How is this possible?" Uryu wondered, awestruck. "Did that scream somehow attract them here?"

Ichigo thought back, trying to remember exactly what had happened when he'd first heard that god-awful sound. Hearing it had... triggered something within him. Something primal. It was a sensation he would have associated with his Hollow side, if it had still existed. He did have _some _power left though, however little it may have been. Maybe a shred of his pale 'twin' still lingered somewhere?

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what called them here," he agreed with Uryu. "And I think I know who's behind this too," he added bitterly. Orihime nodded excitedly. "I believe you're right, Kurosaki-kun. It was very faint, but I managed to pick up his Reiatsu when it happened."

Ichigo cursed under his breath. It was one thing after another ever since that bastard woke up from his century-long beauty sleep. He couldn't wait to get his powers back, so he could personally rip Takahashi a couple new orifices and put an end to this mess.

As for the current state of his abilities... it wasn't good. That scream from earlier had affected Orihime to the point she had physically shuddered. Even someone like Keigo, who was nowhere near as sensitive as she was to otherworldly matters, had gone white as a sheet. Ichigo himself had barely been affected at all. In fact, when he'd heard it, it had been as if the sound was being transmitted through a malfunctioning radio.

Urahara had said he would only be able to communicate with spirits for another week. The end of that grace period was approaching far quicker than Ichigo would have liked.

"Ichigo," Chad spoke up, "me and Uryu are going to take out as many as we can. Don't do anything reckless, and stay close to Orihime!" he ordered. Ichigo nodded somewhat meekly in response, and the pair took off using their respective high-speed techniques, quickly taking to the sky. Damn; he really missed being able to walk on thin air like that.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime snapped him out of his reveries. "Tessai-san is on his way here. I can sense him just a little bit up ahead. Let's go meet up." She ducked into the ally to her left, and Ichigo didn't have much choice but to follow his newly-assigned bodyguard. Indeed, after a two minute walk they came across the giant of a man; apparently he had been looking for them as well. He wasn't by himself though: Jinta and Ururu were accompanying him, carrying their signature oversized club and rocket-launcher. The two groups hurriedly joined up.

"I'm very relieved to see you both unharmed," Tessai began, breathing just a little heavier than usual. They must have run like hell to arrive here as fast as they did. The shop was still quite some distance away, and they must have needed some time to prepare their equipment before heading out. Above them, a swarm of Hollows was rapidly descending onto the town. A few of them seemed to have teamed up and were headed in their general direction, probably attracted by the group's Reiatsu. If they thought they would getting an easy meal, they had another thing coming.

Something was different about Tessai today. For the first time since Ichigo met him, he wasn't wearing his work clothes, but the standard black Shinigami uniform. His Gigai was probably still at Urahara Shoten. While Tessai was talking, Jinta and Ururu jumped up onto the roof of the building next to them and took care of the Hollows that had ventured a little too close to the group. Well, Ururu did. Jinta just yelled at her and pulled her hair for not leaving him any. It wasn't like she could help it; a rocket launcher did tend to be more effective than a blunt melee weapon. The boy had only himself to blame.

Ichigo tried not to let it show, but he was becoming quite anxious with the whole situation. Not because of the Hollow invasion (though that was certainly a contributing factor) but because he could see almost right through Tessai. His voice sounded muffled too, despite their close proximity to one another. His powers were finally giving out completely. It didn't exactly come as a surprise, but still...

"It's a good thing I came upon you so quickly, Kurosaki-san," Tessai continued, formal as always. "The boss asked me to give you this." He reached inside of his robes and pulled out what looked to be a remote control for a child's toy. "What does it do?" Ichigo asked suspiciously. Urahara wasn't in the habit of giving away equipment for free. There was always a catch, and Ichigo was sure this time would be no exception.

He kept a close watch on Tessai, but the man's facial expression didn't betray anything. "It is a remote control," he simply said, looking at something behind Ichigo. "For that." The teen turned around, seeing only the street they had just come from. "For what, exactly?"

Tessai simply lifted an arm and pointed. Ichigo tried again, carefully scanning the area Tessai indicated. Again, he saw the street... a little higher: some apartment buildings... higher: the roofs of said buildings... even higher: a skyscraper off in the distance- Wait. Back up. There was something on the roof of the residential blocks. Something a little hard for him to make out. It seemed... oddly transparent. It was a... white blur? With... a smudge of blue on top of it? Oh.

Oh no. This had to be some kind of sick joke.

"We really needed someone to watch over him, and the boss figured that you would be eager to help out in some way..." Tessai calmly explained while Ichigo's mind struggled to comprehend what Urahara had just tasked him with. Clearly, he wasn't the only one unhappy with this arrangement. From across the street, perched on the roof of one of the apartment buildings, Grimmjow was giving him a look so intense, so nasty it could have burnt a hole through titanium armor plating.

"Tessai," Ichigo cautiously spoke up, trying (and failing) not to freak out. "Is that twisted, perverted, bucket-hat-wearing excuse for a human being seriously asking me to be Grimmjow's babysitter?

The taller man had the decency to look somewhat apologetic, at least. "Well, err- that is..." He was squirming, obviously remembering what had happened the last time he had pissed Ichigo off. "The boss believed that you were- that you were the right man for the job," he stammered out. Both Ichigo and Grimmjow, albeit from quite some distance away in the Arrancar's case, were now boring holes into him with the combined weight of their furious gazes. "Well then, I ah- I really ought to get going. Barriers to set up and whatnot," he nervously managed to get out. Ichigo noticed Tessai was trying very hard not to make eye contact. Most likely out of fear that he would spontaneously burst into flames if he did. "Please, do try to get along." Before Ichigo could protest further, the man had taken off with a Flash Step and disappeared from sight.

Ichigo's right eye twitched. He'd noticed that had been happening remarkably often when Urahara was involved. Orihime had wisely remained quiet once she realized in what direction the conversation was going. However, considering Ichigo had completely halted all activity and was now just standing there, furiously staring at the place where Tessai had disappeared, she figured she should do something. She nervously cleared her throat to draw his attention. "Um, Kurosaki-kun?" No reaction. "Ichigo?" she tried again. Very slowly, the teen turned his head to look at her. Even though she knew his anger wasn't directed at her, she still blanched a little when she saw the look in his eyes. While she didn't want to push her luck, they did have a major Hollow invasion on their hands that urgently needed dealing with. "Shall we go up to Grimmjow-san?"

Very stiffly, Ichigo managed the slightest of nods. With her Shun Shun Rikka, Orihime had three of the fairies generate her trusty triangular shield for use as a floating platform. They both got on, and Orihime quickly had the shield rise up and fly over to the other side of the street. Considering there was no surprised shouting from the pedestrians below, it was probably safe to assume nobody had bothered to look directly upward whilst they were doing so.

Grimmjow still hadn't moved so much as an inch in all the time they had spent talking with Tessai. Ichigo immediately noticed the thick metal collar around his neck. It was quite a humiliating way to keep him under control, but it got the job done, he supposed. Not that he approved of such a method.

"Hi," Ichigo greeted him, having found his voice again. Acting as Grimmjow's warden may not have been the most pleasant of jobs, but at least he wasn't the one with the bomb around his neck. Ichigo figured he should at least try to be civil to Grimmjow so as to no risk setting him off. At least not while he and Orihime were inside of the blast radius.

"The shopkeeper told me I'd get to go out and fight. I guess he forgot to mention he was assigning me a nanny," the Espada said by way of greeting.

Ichigo sighed and ran a hand through his hair out of frustration. "Trust me, this isn't how I imagined my day going either." While he understood the necessity of keeping Grimmjow under control, especially in the middle of a city with hundreds of people milling about, Ichigo still found this whole situation rather degrading. Both for himself, since he was probably going to spend the next few hours frantically running around town in an effort to keep up with Grimmjow, as well as for his 'charge'. The whole exploding dog collar thing could not have been pleasant for him.

"I don't like this either, Grimmjow. You probably like it even less, but I promise you: I will not be using this thing," he held up the remote for Grimmjow to see, "unless you leave me absolutely no other option. Just don't start murdering innocent people and you won't even know I'm here."

"Whatever," Grimmjow dismissed his words. Clearly, the man was still pretty damn pissed about the whole deal. And for once, Ichigo found himself on his side. "Can I get going now? 'Cause I really want to kill something," Grimmjow continued. "Or do you want me to beg first? Roll over? Should I call you 'master', maybe?" At this point he wasn't really saying the words so much as spitting them out.

Ichigo could tell he was being sarcastic, but was still shocked by the amount of venom in his words. Clearly he didn't like being treated like a dog. Especially not, it seemed, when Ichigo was the one holding the leash. And let's face it, treating him like a dangerous animal was exactly what Urahara (and by extension, Ichigo) was currently doing, even if it was for perfectly valid reasons.

Grimmjow wasn't finished just yet however. "Would you like that, Kurosaki?" he continued, seeing how much it was bothering Ichigo. "You'd probably get off on that shit, wouldn't you?"

"Too far, Grimmjow," the teen seethed. " I get that you're pissed, but if you don't stop spouting this crap right now-"

"Ooh, did I hit a nerve there, Kurosaki? Didn't think you were the type." His lips curled back into a mocking smirk. He was obviously baiting Ichigo, hoping to get into a fight. "Are you gonna punish me now? Set off my shock collar?"

"Hey!" Orihime suddenly interrupted. She was studying the remote in Ichigo's hand. "There really is a button for that!" The second she realized her mistake she slapped both hands over her mouth, but the damage was done.

Silence reigned. You could have heard a pin drop twenty miles away.

"I- I'm not helping, am I?" she sheepishly spoke up with the tiniest of voices. "I'll be quiet."

Grimmjow sighed deeply. He no longer seemed interested in continuing the conversation. He was still quite visibly upset, but seemed to have decided to stick with brooding and throwing them angry looks for now. "Try not to fall _too_ far behind, Kurosaki," was all he said (rather condescendingly, at that) before taking a jumping start, heading straight for the swirling mass of Hollows up above.

"We should stay here, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime almost-whispered. She clearly wasn't going to be forgetting her little slip-up anytime soon. "It's too dangerous to go after him. If I use my shield to take us up there we won't be able to defend ourselves, and I could never take on that many Hollows with just Tsubaki."

Ichigo nodded absently, looking at the remote in his hands again. There were just two buttons: a blue one with a lightning bolt on it, and a smaller red one with a plastic, protective cover over it. He could guess what that last one did.

Just what had Urahara been thinking, giving him something like this? It just seemed so... distasteful. Using dirty methods like this wasn't at all like the shopkeepers usual MO.

Had he intended to force Grimmjow to become Ichigo's personal bodyguard like this? Was this Urahara's twisted, yet well-intentioned way of protecting Ichigo? If so, it was a pretty stupid plan. This was only going to make it more likely for Grimmjow to throw him to the wolves. Ichigo had a good enough grasp of the man's personality to know that much, at least.

He looked around, trying to estimate the enemy's numbers, but it was a wasted effort. They were _everywhere. _They were literally blotting out the sky. Even now, more kept coming in from Hueco Mundo. Never before had Ichigo seen so many Hollows in one place.

Up above, Grimmjow was tearing through the small fry with nothing but his bare hands, occasionally firing a Cero that evaporated around a dozen of them with every blast. At least he was having fun now, Ichigo supposed. The fact that he was slaughtering his fellow Hollows didn't seem to bother him one bit, not that Ichigo had expected it to.

That brought up an interesting metaphysical dilemma though: just what happened to the souls when a Hollow was slain, but not consumed by another Hollow? There was no way for them to pass on to Soul Society without a Konso being performed. While Arrancar did possess Zanpakuto, theirs appeared to lack that particular ability. They weren't being destroyed either; only a Quincy's arrows were capable of doing that. The only remaining option seemed to be for the Souls to simply rejoin the Cycle of Reincarnation, skipping over the whole 'afterlife' part.

Speaking of Quincy. A little Eastward of their current position, Uryu's arrows were flying about in pretty much every direction, some even reaching far enough to perforate the layer of clouds above. Had Uryu always been able to move that fast? He appeared as nothing but a blur to Ichigo. Chad was a little further away, but his rather flashy attacks easily gave away his position. It was a good thing those two were helping out; their techniques were well-suited to taking out the cannon fodder in a highly efficient manner. When they were clumped up like this killing them became almost pathetically easy.

Looking away from his friends, Ichigo redirected his gaze toward Grimmjow again. Keeping an eye on the Espada was supposed to be his job after all. It was hard to find him again, in between the throngs of lesser Hollows. He turned around, when-

"Ichigo!" Orihime tackled him to the ground. Only at the very last second had he sensed the attack coming. He wouldn't have been able to dodge in time by himself.

No sooner had they hit the ground than a large, feathered Hollow passed over them, its claws just barely missing them as it swooped by.

"Tsubaki!" Orihime called out, sending her only offense-oriented fairy after it before it had the chance to turn around and charge again. She must have been pretty pissed; Tsubaki cut the Hollow clean in half without a second's hesitation. With a final pained screech, it fell from the sky and faded away.

With the offending Hollow vanquished, the two of them got up and dusted themselves off. "Are you alright, Kurosaki-kun?" Her cheeks had reddened a little. It could have been because of the exertion, but it was far more likely the result of her having lain on top of him just now.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He checked the remote again, making sure he hadn't accidentally pushed one of the buttons during his fall. "Thanks, Orihime." The girl smiled reassuringly and went back to watching the area. Ichigo figured he should do the same, and resumed his search for Grimmjow.

Well, at least one member of their team was enjoying himself. While Ichigo and Orihime had been busy trying very hard not to get eaten, the bastard had simply continued his massacre. He was like carnage personified; it was actually raining blood underneath the scene of Grimmjow's slaughterfest. While Ichigo watched, Grimmjow bent over forward, used Reishi to solidify the air at his feet, and shot forward with Sonido like being launched from a cannon. Ichigo nearly got whiplash just trying to follow his movements.

His target was fairly obvious; a Gillian had just managed to shamble through the Air Gate it had created, its movements fairly slow and awkward due to its massive size, and Grimmjow was more than happy to finally have a target that wouldn't die from him concentrating at it too hard.

The building-sized Hollow announced its presence to the rest of the invaders with a loud screech. Said screech ended rather abruptly when Grimmjow's foot smashed the top half of its mask in. Kicking off again against the Hollow's face, Grimmjow put some distance in between them while simultaneously firing a Bala at it. The combined force of the kicks and the energy bullet were more than enough to send the whole damned thing tumbling over backwards. It was a good thing it had chosen to appear in one of the parks rather than in a residential area, but even so...

"OI!" Ichigo furiously screamed at the Espada. "Be careful about where you throw those things!" Grimmjow was pretty far away, but if the raised middle finger he was currently directing at Ichigo was any indication, he had gotten the message loud and clear.

Ichigo sucked his teeth, his admittedly short fuse just about ready to go off. "That guy is really starting to get on my nerves," he grumbled at Orihime.

"Well, he _is _helping us, at least," she tried to defend him. "Although it is in a rather... destructive manner." As if to emphasize her point, Grimmjow fired another Bala that made the Menos' head burst open like a watermelon.

As soon as it was dead, the other four Menos that had made it to the world of the living let out mournful screeches as they sensed their comrade's demise. Grimmjow, true to his nature, chose to take that as a challenge.

Without any heads-up to Ichigo, the Arrancar dashed off toward the other side of the city and headed straight for the nearest Gillian while leaving Ichigo and Orihime blowing in the wind. That blue button on the remote was beginning to look more and more tempting to Ichigo.

He was just about to ask Orihime for her opinion on whether or not they should pursue when something else caught his attention. Something big, bulky, and headed straight for them.

"Orihime."

"I know." Her fairies started circling protectively around the two of them. The rapidly approaching individual didn't bother with subtlety. From the looks of it, it was planning on ramming them. Orihime wasn't the least bit intimidated. Even if it had some bulk on it, no ordinary Hollow was capable of breaking through her shield. At the speed it was going, it was going to get pancaked and would die without Orihime having to lift a finger. "Santen Kesshun," she calmly spoke, even as the Hollow charged at them with incredible speed.

BANG!

As predicted, it came to an abrupt halt when it hit the barrier. What Orihime hadn't counted on however was that it would have enough force behind it to actually damage her shield. Nor that the attacker would prove tough enough to survive the crash.

"That's quite the sturdy barrier you have there, _missy_," the Hollow hissed. Most of it's enormous body was covered with reptilian scales. It looked horrendously strong physically; its body seemed to consist solely of nothing but huge, bulging muscle. It had arms like steel cables, and claws that seemed to be designed specifically to tear through flesh in the most painful way possible. Its abdominal muscles were those of a Greek God on steroids. In stark contrast to its heavy-set body however, was its head. Its neck in particular was quite thin, and unnaturally long. Coupled with its cobra-like mask, it looked like a snake had simply plugged its tail-end into another Hollow's body. If their lives hadn't been in serious danger right now, Ichigo probably would have found the overall effect quite comical.

Orihime quickly took a few steps back once she realized her mistake. This was no ordinary Hollow. The Reiatsu it emitted was far too intense for that. As it turned out, the Gillian weren't the only Menos-class to have made it to Karakura.

The Hollow dug its nails into the shield. "It's not very often a Void Call is sounded. I found myself quite curious to see who did it, and why. Now, I see that there are plenty of interesting beings hiding out in this city. I'll be sure to savor the taste of every one of them." It grinned evilly at the two humans in front of it, Orihime's shield slowly cracking under the force it was exerting. If Orihime had been by herself, she most likely would have been able to defeat it without too much trouble. But when she had Ichigo to watch out for?

Still, it wasn't like she had much of a choice. She adopted a combat-ready stance, grateful that the short skirt of her school uniform allowed for easy movement. Tsubaki moved to her side, ready to strike at her command. "Stay close to me, Kurosaki-kun."

Ichigo quickly did as asked. The Adjuchas snickered when it saw Orihime's serious look. "So you're going try and fight me, are you? I do like a girl with _spunk_." A forked tongue flickered out of it's mouth. "Show me what you've got, _missy_."

* * *

><p>With the cloak he'd recovered from Las Noches covering his face, Katsumi carefully navigated the streets of Rukongai. He was rather displeased, though not the least bit surprised, that it was every bit as bad as he remembered. Maybe even slightly worse: he was pretty sure there hadn't been so many drunkards brawling out in the streets the last time he passed through this area, over a century ago.<p>

Currently, he was passing through the 35th Eastern district, of which the name eluded him. While this should have been one of the 'better' districts of Rukongai, he still passed by an alarmingly large number of decrepit buildings and starving beggars. People had tried to mug him no less than sixteen times in the roughly twenty minutes since his arrival.

After having sent Number Sixteen limping away with a rather impressive collection of broken bones, word seemed to have spread and people quickly learned to avoid him. Hand-to-hand combat wasn't exactly his forte, but the sheer difference in Spiritual Pressure between him and the people here made him pretty much impervious to their attacks. Besides, he couldn't possibly use any Kido here. Doing so would cause him to be instantly exposed, and having the entire Gotei on his ass was something he'd rather avoid right now. Plus, there was a good chance they were already expecting him. Kisuke Urahara would most likely see the Hollow invasion in Karakura for the distraction it really was.

All the more reason for him to hurry. This just so happened to be the part of the operation that depended on luck the most though. If he wanted his plan to succeed, he would have to find and isolate a Shinigami on patrol in Rukongai, and do so without drawing attention to himself. The closer he got to Seireitei, the better his chances were of coming across someone he could use. Unfortunately, doing so would also heighten the risk of being discovered.

Since district 35 turned out to be a bust, he crossed over into district 34. Once again, there were very mild improvements to the overall quality of life when compared to the previous area. Less beggars for instance, and more people wearing sandals rather than going barefoot. It was downright disgusting how the council of 46 hoarded all the wealth within the borders of the Seireitei – most of all in their own pockets – while leaving millions upon millions of people to fend for themselves in the slums. Katsumi had hoped to change that, but unfortunately he was out of time. Perhaps he would get the chance to reclaim his body and further his goals sometime in the future. He wasn't getting his hopes up though. There was a much greater chance he – well, Hyperion, technically speaking – would be hunted down and killed long before such an opportunity arose. His inner Hollow wasn't the type to play nice.

He closed his eyes and focused on his surroundings. He estimated the Spirit Power of every single individual within his considerable detection range, scanning many hundreds of Reiatsu emissions in mere moments.

Katsumi stopped in his tracks. A smile found its way onto his face.

Bingo. Among the massive crowd, there was a single person whose Reiatsu was undoubtedly higher than the norm.

A lone Shinigami wandering around the streets of Rukongai? A Shinigami who, judging by their Reiatsu, was just barely strong enough to hold the rank of a seated officer, and was most likely miles removed from any form of backup? It looked like he'd found his ticket into the Seireitei.

Unless of course fate decided to fuck with him and he was actually dealing with either a rogue or a very well-trained undercover agent. Also, he sincerely hoped whoever he was dealing with wouldn't have green hair. He had every color hair dye on him _except _for green.

Since he was being picky anyway, he decided it would be preferable if he were dealing with a man. He'd brought a pair of small pillows he could use as fake breasts if needed, but he'd never be able to live it down if he actually had to use them.

The most important factors were height and musculature though. Pretty much everything else he could fake up to a certain degree. He could not however suddenly decide to grow or shrink a few centimeters depending on the circumstances. Katsumi was fairly tall and, at best, toned. If this person turned out to be a roid-raging midget he was screwed.

Hopping over the at times unstable roofs of houses and shacks, he quickly closed in on the source of the Reiatsu while suppressing his own to imperceptible levels. Once he was close enough, he looked down at his target. What he saw made him sigh in defeat.

"Fake breasts it is, then."

* * *

><p>Ichigo did his best to keep up with Orihime as she moved around. One misstep on his part could cost them both their lives right now. The hulking snake-like Hollow kept on taking repeated jabs at the shield, damaging it but never outright breaking it.<p>

"That's a very interesting power you have there, missy. And I can sense a lot of energy coming from your boyfriend too... I'm sure both of you are going to taste _delicious."_ The way it hissed when it said 'delicious' made Ichigo shudder in disgust. Orihime made a strange, high-pitched sound, but Ichigo guessed that had more to do with the 'boyfriend' comment rather than the idea of getting eaten.

His friends were _weird._

Orihime was making some valiant efforts to take the Hollow down, but with Tsubaki as her only means of attacking, her options were understandably limited. Ichigo had considered calling Chad or Uryu and ask them for help, but had quickly decided against it. Uryu had his hands full defending the school, and Chad was busy dealing with the Menos Grande that were running around. If either one of them were to come to their aid now, many other people were going to die. Their friends who were still in school would likely be first in line. Hollows had a major appetite for anyone with spiritual awareness.

They both dodged to the side when the Adjuchas flanked them using Sonido, and attempted to slash at them where the shield didn't reach. They managed to escape unharmed, however...

"Hmmm? What's this little toy you dropped?" The Hollow reached down to pick up the remote.

Ichigo's insides went cold. Thanks to all those crazy maneuvers he'd made while evading, the remote must have slipped out of his pants pocket. He saw how Orihime instantly blanched. He must have looked much the same, if not worse. It felt like all the blood had instantly drained from his face.

Seeing their reactions, the Hollow leered at them mischievously. "I see. This device is important, is it not? Well, there's only one way to find out what it does." It placed a single claw on the blue button and pushed down.

Ichigo's breath hitched. The Hollow looked around to see if it could figure out what the remote did. It let go of the button again.

"Kurosaki-kun. Grimmjow's Reiatsu briefly weakened when that Hollow used the remote, but it's back to normal now," Orihime whispered in his ear. "I believe he'll be heading back here to see what's going on."

Ichigo bit his lip. Grimmjow coming back now could either be good, or really, really bad. If he managed to take out the Hollow without complications, they'd be saved. If, however, the Hollow were to set off his collar while Grimmjow was so close to them...

"How... _disappointing_," the snake head hissed again. "Maybe the other button will do something more interesting..." The Adjuchas mused to itself.

"No!" Ichigo screamed, instinctively charging towards the Hollow... and quickly realizing how stupid that was. Skidding to a halt, he took a big jump backwards. The Hollow appeared to be smirking at him from behind its mask. It was holding its hand up in the air, ready to strike. One more step and those razor-sharp claws would have gutted him.

"Oh? Now I'm _really _curious to see what the red one does." It mockingly slid a finger over the plastic cover protecting the button. It quickly dropped that teasing demeanor when a bright red Cero nearly blasted its upper body into dust.

With a low humming sound, Grimmjow materialized right next to Ichigo. "So you dodged that. Slippery bastard, aren't ya?" The Hollow froze when it laid eyes on Grimmjow. "A- an Espada?! But- but why?!" It stuttered, utterly terrified. The Adjuchas' gaze nervously darted between the three people there as it tried to figure out what was going on.

"Kurosaki, two questions." Grimmjow's tone was low, and dangerous. The Arrancar refused to look at him, but Ichigo imagined there must have been a mighty scary expression on his face. He swallowed. "Was it you who pushed that button?"

"No." Ichigo was convinced that a wrong answer here would cost him his life.

"Second question: what exactly is that shitstain over there holding?"

Ichigo took a deep breath before answering. "That... that would be the remote."

He saw Grimmjow's shoulders tense. "I see." That was all he needed to know apparently. Faster than Ichigo's eyes could follow, Grimmjow charged at the Adjuchas-class Hollow with a burst of Sonido, Pantera leading the way. It was already over before Ichigo had time to blink. It just didn't end in a way any of them had expected. Through some bizarre twist of fate, the Adjuchas was still standing. Grimmjow, who by all accounts should have destroyed such an adversary without breaking a sweat, went completely limp mid-jump and fell like a puppet with its strings cut.

Pantera clattered to the ground, propelled forward by Grimmjow's momentum and skittered loudly across the roof, coming to a stop by the Hollow's feet. A shocked silence followed. None of them, not even the Hollow, seemed to have expected this outcome.

"Heh... Hehehe..." Still somewhat nervously, the Hollow began to laugh. "Hahahaha!" Once the realization that it had come out the victor sunk in, it brazenly cackled in triumph.

The Hollow hadn't struck Grimmjow down. How could it have? It didn't possess so much as a fraction of the speed that Grimmjow had displayed. In the time it had taken the Espada to leap across the entire length of roof and close the distance between him and his adversary, it hadn't been able to move an inch.

It did however, have just enough time to push down on a single button.

* * *

><p>Katsumi was not amused.<p>

Not only was the woman he was impersonating so slender he'd been forced to put on a goddamn corset, but she was quite well-endowed to boot. He had to use two pairs of cushions in order to semi-accurately recreate her bust. The hair and uniform he'd gotten lucky with at least: her hair was straight and about the same length as his own, so all he'd really needed to do was dye it black and tie it up in a ponytail. As for her uniform: once he stuffed the chest area, it fit him like a glove. The overall resemblance was close enough.

The important part was that he could pass for the woman from a distance. There was no need to bother with details like make-up or the exact hairstyle. The really important part wasn't anything as superficial as that.

No. The one thing he needed to get into the Seireitei, the one thing that truly mattered, was the Reiatsu signature of an enlisted Shinigami. More specifically, a Shinigami who had received clearance to travel between Rukongai and the Seireitei.

You see, Katsumi possessed a unique talent. It was something he learned to do while furthering his research into new ways of learning and utilizing Kido.

Normally when casting a spell you utilized a Spirit Chant, and used that to give shape to the raw Spirit Energy required for the spell. That was the very foundation on which all schools of contemporary Kido were based. However, Katsumi had already been using Kido long before Aoi had taught him his first Incantation. That most basic of attacks he had learned from the spirits at the temple; the ability to gather up raw energy, force it into a ball, and shoot it at your target... That too, was essentially Kido. A form of Kido that didn't require any Spirit Chants and, as a result, was much more flexible and intuitive when compared with the regular version. The major downside was that it was a lot harder to control.

Katsumi had further expanded on that basic ability. He had applied the same principles used to form that ball of energy to pre-existing spells, leading to the creation of his line of Modified Kido. In time, he had learned to apply those principles to the energy one subconsciously emitted - Reiatsu. As a result, Katsumi was now the only person in the Seireitei capable of tampering with his own Reiatsu signature and, by extension, copying that of others.

Thinking about it though, it was certainly possible his former student had discovered how to do it in the time he had been gone. Byakuya was after all the only person he knew who had possessed the talent to learn Katsumi's unique, Incantation-less style of utilizing Kido. The runt had even learned Bankai now. A truly magnificent Bankai at that. That Gokei technique Byakuya had used during Katsumi's earlier visit had shredded his own Aigis spell like it was paper. It had nearly been the end of him.

Honestly, he shouldn't have been surprised to see that Byakuya had grown into such a strong young man. The runt had been incredibly talented when he was younger, and horrifically stubborn to boot. When he couldn't grasp a technique right away, he'd simply refused to give up until he had reached the point of mastery. And that stubbornness had clearly paid off. Byakuya had grown up to become a powerful, mature and disciplined man. Katsumi really didn't have the right to call him a runt anymore.

But now wasn't the proper time to reflect on the past. Getting into the Seireitei had been a cakewalk once he'd found and subdued the female Soul Reaper. The giant guarding the eastern gate had let him through without any suspicion whatsoever. The automated alarm hadn't gone off either, so his imitation of the woman's Reiatsu must have been accurate enough.

Even so, it was high time he found a safe place to drop off the grid. He couldn't keep this up forever. The only way to copy another person's Reiatsu was by 'synchronizing' with it when the subject was nearby. If his concentration lapsed for even a second, his Reiatsu emission would go back to normal, and it would be impossible to recreate her unique signature without a template nearby. Considering he'd left the woman all the way back in District 34, he obviously didn't have time to go back and start over.

Besides that, time was working against him. With every second that passed since his synchronizing with the female Soul Reaper, more imperfections would show up in his faked signature. Eventually someone was bound to notice.

He was getting fairly close to the First Division barracks. It would be dangerous to get any closer than this without concealing himself properly. Even if no one else did, Yama-ji would undoubtedly take notice of his discrepant Reiatsu. Maybe if he'd gotten here faster the signature could have fooled him, but it had already degraded too much by now.

As he came close enough to see his assumed destination with his own eyes, he quickly realized what a foolish mistake he'd made.

The First Division's barracks were in the midst of being repaired. Some Shinigami were milling about the premises, but most of the people present were construction workers. Katsumi nearly smacked himself. How could he have missed something so obvious? The last time he'd been here, there had been quite a lot of property damage thanks to the erratic lightning strikes his Shikai produced. He hadn't exactly had the time to check out the building's structural integrity at the time, but he should have at least anticipated a complication such as this.

Now what was he going to do? Clearly Yamamoto wasn't going to be hanging out in the ruins of his own Division at a time like this. So where else could he have gone? There were 12 other Divisions his Squad could have chosen to bunk with, and Katsumi didn't have time to check them all out. His diversion in Karakura probably wouldn't last much longer. If there were that many Captain-class Shinigami in the city, it didn't matter whether they had to fight a dozen Menos or a hundred. Eventually they'd all be wiped out, and if that regiment of powerful Soul Reapers decided to interfere now, it would be instant Game Over for him.

He decided to take a risk. The chance anyone here knew the woman he was impersonating was quite small considering she was from Squad 5. Surely, no one would recognize her by Reiatsu alone. His obviously male voice however _would_ give him away, so he duck into a nearby alley, got rid of the corset and cushions on his chest, and used his cloak to obscure his face once again. There were quite a few weirdos in the Gotei who preferred to hide their faces, so he doubted this would make him stand out all that much.

He casually walked back up to the construction site. "Excuse me," he spoke to the first Shinigami he came across. It was a respectable-looking older man. As long as you remained polite, these types were usually easy to get along with. "Yes?" the man turned to Katsumi.

"I'm looking for Head Captain Yamamoto. I was asked to deliver a report to him personally."

The man frowned suspiciously at that. Katsumi bit his lip. Clearly this one wouldn't be easy to fool.

"I don't believe I've seen you around before, young man. What Division are you with?"

"The Fifth, sir."

His frown deepened. Katsumi knew he'd made a mistake. "Then tell me, who did you receive this order from? Your Division is without a Captain at the moment is it not?

_Dammit!_ The Fifth must have been the Division of one of the three traitors. Just his luck. Why couldn't that woman have been in a Squad whose Captain he did know? His severe lack of knowledge on what had occurred during the last century had just bitten him in the ass at the worst possible time.

"Our lieutenant asked me to sir," he continued to lie, essentially digging himself in deeper. "I don't know what the report entails, but I figure it must be important." He was trying very hard not to let his agitation show. Even so, this was probably a lost cause.

The man showed open suspicion now. "I see. Incidentally, what lieutenant would this be?"

Katsumi angrily clenched his jaw. Unbelievable. After going through all the trouble of infiltrating the Seireitei undetected, he was going to be exposed just because he didn't know some Lieutenant's name? He sighed in annoyance. 'No plan survives first contact with the enemy.' Should have remembered that. The First Division member's hand moved to his Zanpakuto. It was a pity, but diplomacy seemed to have failed. Time for plan B then.

Before the older man could call for help, Katsumi waved a hand in front of his face and cast his sleeping spell. The man dropped like a sack of bricks. He never even hit the ground; Katsumi slung him over his shoulder and Flash Stepped away with his captive. All this took less than 2 seconds. With a little luck nobody had noticed, though the missing Shinigami was certain to draw someone's attention eventually.

He brought the man into the same alley from earlier and semi-gently put him down. Another pair of Kido spells served to restrain and wake him up again. The man was understandably confused and frightened when he regained consciousness, but Katsumi really didn't have time to do this the gentle way.

The poor bastard wet himself pretty much instantly when Hyperion's Reiatsu hit him. His inner Hollow could get under the skin of even the toughest, most fearless of men. Even a powerful individual like Grimmjow the Arrancar had been shaking like a leaf under the effects of that vile Spiritual Pressure. Using it against a Shinigami who wasn't even Seated was just plain cruel.

There was no defense against something like this. If you knew what is was you were afraid of, you could either try to block it out or force yourself to man up. Once you became affected by Hyperion's Reiatsu however, no amount of logical thinking could help you. Every single fiber of your being would be infused with the knowledge you would wiped from existence, utterly crushed by overwhelming force with no chance of survival. It invoked a primal sensation of absolute, insurmountable terror.

Katsumi leaned in closer to his captive. The man's breathing was disturbingly irregular; Katsumi could feel the pathetic little puffs of air against his skin. He would probably start hyperventilating soon. Katsumi hoped to end the interrogation before that happened.

"Now then," Katsumi spoke lowly. The man's eyes were darting around wildly, like a cornered animal looking desperately for a way to escape. Putting a firm hand against the man's cheek, Katsumi forced the poor soul to look directly at him. "Where did you say Yama-ji was, again?"

* * *

><p>The Hollow's claws raked over Orihime's shield. It was restricted to using only one arm now, since one of its hands was now occupied with holding the button down. That didn't prove to be much of a handicap though. Sooner or later Orihime would run out of energy and they would all be ripe for the killing.<p>

"Kurosaki-kun, please get away!" she cried out desperately. Unfortunately, that just wasn't something he could do. Ichigo looked down at Grimmjow. The Arrancar's head lolled back like a rag doll's as Ichigo dragged him across the rooftop by his armpits. Grimmjow did his best to stare back at Ichigo. He was fully conscious, and understandably quite agitated by the whole situation.

As it turned out, that blue button didn't serve to deliver a simple electric shock. Ichigo should have known Urahara would never use something that cruel and demeaning. Conversely, Urahara must have known that if Ichigo _did_ decide to push that button, he would have needed a damn good reason to do so. As such, he had equipped Grimmjow's collar with some sort of paralyzer to instantly and painlessly put him out of commission in case he did go out of control.

Ichigo was doing his best to put some distance between the two of them and the Adjuchas. While they were moving around, Orihime used her shield to keep the Hollow back. She had enlarged it to the point it completely divided the roof into two sections. If it wanted to get at them, the Hollow had no choice but to jump over it. And that was exactly what Orihime hoped it would do. As soon as it was in mid-air and vulnerable, Tsubaki – who was on standby, circling Orihime – would gore and bisect it from within.

Unfortunately, that plan had quickly fallen to pieces. The Adjuchas was intelligent enough to anticipate such an attack, and had absolutely no intention of putting itself at risk. Instead, it had gone with the safer, albeit more time-consuming method of physically tearing Orihime's barrier down.

If they didn't come up with something soon, all three of them were goners. They had to get that damn remote back, or at least destroy it somehow. With Grimmjow back in the mix, this fight would be over in seconds.

"Aah!" Orihime cried out. The Hollow had struck the shield again, and this time visible cracks appeared. She couldn't keep this up much longer. Already she was running on fumes.

Ichigo swore softly, cursing himself for ever letting go of the damn thing. While he was at it, he cursed Urahara too for giving it to him in the first place. What was that crazy shopkeeper doing at a time like this anyway? With the entire town in danger, he could have at least stepped outside his lab for an hour or two to help. For that matter, why wasn't Yoruichi showing up either?

Ichigo stopped moving. They had reached the edge of the roof, and Grimmjow still showed no sign he would be getting back up anytime soon. They were all out of options. _Except_ for one. Ichigo had been thinking it over, wondering whether it was worth taking the risk. Now that it had come to this he could either try it, or face certain death.

Ichigo saw how Orihime was starting to edge toward their position. If he wanted his plan to work, now was the time do it. "Wait, don't come closer!" he called out to Orihime, checking to see if the Hollow was paying attention. She stopped, clearly confused. "Stay away from us! Don't get too close to this thing!" Ichigo continued. He now had the Hollow's undivided attention; the snake head was peering at him intently. "I don't want you near it if it goes off!"

Orihime looked at him like he'd gone crazy. It was an understandable reaction. After all, she didn't know what Ichigo was planning, so him pointing out the explosive nature of Grimmjow's collar to their enemy would have made anyone question his sanity.

The Adjuchas sniggered, clearly not sharing her concern for Ichigo's mental health. Ichigo thought it was sniggering at least. No matter what the Hollow did, it all sounded more like hissing to him than anything else. "Why thank you, my dear boy, for pointing that out." It casually flipped open the plastic cover over the red button.

Ichigo did his best to look nervous. Honestly, it wasn't that hard to pull off. This was still a pretty major gamble, and their lives were the stakes. All Ichigo could do now was hope his faith in his mentor had not been misplaced.

He looked at Grimmjow again. No doubt the Arrancar would have been slapping him silly if he'd been capable of doing so. Many conflicting emotions were visible in his eyes. Anger was, not unexpectedly, chief among them. Confusion and even a hint of fear were in there too. It felt weird seeing Grimmjow so vulnerable. Ichigo winked at him conspiratorially, hoping to convey his intent. He couldn't help smiling somewhat when Grimmjow looked even more lost. 'Trust me' Ichigo mouthed soundlessly.

Meanwhile, Orhime was desperately trying to get to Ichigo's side in time. When this was over, he was going to have to come up with one hell of an apology for making her worry like that. That is, assuming there was going to be an 'after'. Agonizingly slowly, the Hollow put his finger on the button. It was dragging this out as much as possible, very much enjoying Orihime's desperate attempt to get to Ichigo in time and drag him away from Grimmjow, AKA the Blast Zone.

She cried out his name, deathly afraid and crying almost hysterically. She managed to reach him and grabbed his arm, using all her strength to try and pry him away from Grimmjow. "Kurosaki-kun!" she choked out, "we have to go!"

"No, I'm not leaving him behind!" he replied dramatically. "Go! Save yourself!" That was one hell of a cheesy line, he thought to himself. The Hollow seemed to be eating it all up though.

This was it; the moment of truth. He'd banked it all on his faith in his mentor - rather, on Urahara's faith in him. Not just his own life, but Grimmjow's and even Orihime's as well were at stake here. If Urahara really was the man Ichigo thought him to be, then his plan would be their salvation. If not... well, he really didn't want to think about that possibility.

"ICHIGO!" Orihime shrieked, absolutely beside herself. Grimmjow's eyes widened. The Hollow pushed the button.

Everything went black.

* * *

><p>AN: Please don't hate me for that cliffhanger. I really just needed a way to end this chapter already, since this was shaping up to be another, 10K+ words behemoth. I'd say I managed to update within a semi-reasonable time-frame for once. Sure it took me over a month, but it is a pretty damn long chapter.

We're almost at the end of the first arc. Next chapter will wrap it all up. After that, well... you'll see. Katsumi's face-off with Yamamoto is going to have some serious consequences, and Soul Society won't be able to afford keeping Ichigo on the sidelines any longer. I'm honestly really giddy about giving him back his Shinigami powers. I haven't seen the method I'm about to have Urahara use in any other fics. It should be interesting, to say the least. I really just want Ichigo to be useful during fight scenes again, and there will be plenty of those further down the road.

Next update might take a while, since I'll be busy studying for college exams. Don't let that stop you from leaving a Review though! They're what drive me to keep working on this.

Happy holidays, everyone!


	12. End of an Era

**Chapter 12: End of an Era**

Lately, Grimmjow found, he had been staring death in the face far more often than what he was accustomed to. Sure, he enjoyed the thrill of battle; the rush of adrenaline that came with putting your life on the line.

But even he had his limits.

"You crazy son of a bitch!" he swore loudly at Ichigo as he removed his collar. Was it possible that Kurosaki had known the whole time that the red button was actually an emergency off-switch? Because it sure as shit hadn't seemed that way to Grimmjow.

He was absolutely furious. He would have loved nothing more than to beat the former Soul Reaper within an inch of his life for what he had just put him through. Unfortunately that wasn't going to be happening anytime soon. When the collar was deactivated, Grimmjow's Reiatsu had immediately spiked and Ichigo, being so close-by, had been knocked out instantly when that tremendous force assaulted him. The bastard didn't know how lucky he was to be unconscious.

Grimmjow surveyed the rooftop. Orihime had fallen to her knees right next to him and Ichigo. Even though she was physically fine, she seemed too shocked to get back up after their shared near-death experience. She was making strange little choking sounds, like she had forgotten how to breathe. If he hadn't been so angry, Grimmjow probably would have found it funny.

When he laid eyes on the Hollow responsible for the current state of affairs, Grimmjow almost felt sorry for it. _Almost._

Rather than trying to process what had happened and thus acknowledging the fact that its situation had turned quite bleak, the Hollow's brain appeared to have simply shut down. Perhaps due to some internal defense mechanism, trying to protect itself from further trauma.

It was still staring at Grimmjow. Still smiling that same victorious – albeit somewhat deranged now – smile. Still repeatedly pushing that button, as if thinking that could somehow reverse what it had done.

Very slowly, Grimmjow's features morphed into a predatory grin. Ichigo had fallen over against him when passing out, so Grimmjow carelessly pushed him off as he stood upright.

The Hollow finally dropped the useless remote and took off.

Grimmjow shot a Bala after it that made its left knee explode.

The scream it let out was positively _cathartic. _Grimmjow closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, relishing the sound.

The Adjuchas clumsily tried to get back up, its remaining limbs flailing about wildly as it struggled to regain a foothold. While it was preoccupied, Grimmjow utilized Sonido to traverse the entire roof, reclaim Panthera, and reappear by the Hollow's side before it realized he had moved.

Grimmjow noticed that while it should have been bleeding profusely from its demolished leg, its regenerative abilities had already stemmed the flow to nothing but a trickle. Grimmjow remedied that by lopping off two more of its limbs: the other leg, and an arm for variety. That got the blood flowing again.

Grimmjow looked on, rather satisfied, as what was left of the Hollow quickly became dyed in red as it helplessly splashed about in its own blood.

"P-please," it sputtered with its tongue flicking out, "I beg you- please- kill me..."

Grimmjow couldn't help himself- he grinned even wider. Any more and his face was going to get stuck like that. "You know what?" he asked the Hollow, wrapping a hand around its thin neck and lifting it up to eye-level, "I think I will." Effortlessly, he spun the pathetic lump of meat around in a circle over his head.

He let go and watched it sail through the air in a perfect arc, leaving a trail of blood behind underneath it as it flew.

There was but a single structure on the otherwise flat and featureless rooftop: a small building with a door that led directly to a stairwell going down into the apartment complex itself. When it came back down, the Hollow smashed into said building - and stayed pinned against it when Grimmjow launched Panthera after it to pierce through its remaining hand and into the wall.

The Espada calmly walked up to his mutilated, broken and pathetically weeping prey. He gently took hold of its chin and made it look up at him. In that same gentle, serene manner he said: "I never said I was gonna kill you quickly though." When Grimmjow saw the devastated, utterly hopeless look in the creature's eyes upon realizing it wouldn't even be granted the mercy of a swift and relatively painless death, he was satisfied. This seemed like just about enough of a punishment for what it had done to him. Well... maybe just a little more.

He took a few steps back from the Hollow, who was now frantically trying to escape, or regrow its lost limbs, or even kill itself and end its own suffering, hell, to do _anything _really, and raised his arm. "Cero."

The red death ray blew a hole right through the tiny structure, but did not so much as graze the Hollow. Yet.

Agonizingly slowly, Grimmjow raised his palm further. The Hollow screamed as it saw the beam eating through the solid brick wall and inching closer toward the bloody stumps that had once been its thighs. The screams grew louder when the Cero made contact, and its flesh began to burn, then melt, and finally disintegrate. It was interesting really, Grimmjow thought whimsically, to hear how its wailing grew steadily louder and more rabid as he worked his way through its upper thighs, pelvis and intestines, and then quickly faded away into nothing once he reached the heart and lungs.

Somewhat quicker than Grimmjow would have liked, it drew its last breath. He stopped channeling the Cero and walked up to the desecrated remains. All that was left of it was its right arm and part of its neck, held together by a strip of flesh. The head was completely gone; once the beam had gotten close enough, The Hollow had quickly taken the opportunity to off itself by diving into it face-first. Grimmjow pulled Panthera out, wiped the blade off on the corpse, and sheathed it. He would make sure to clean it properly once he got back.

As a final act of contempt, rather than destroying the remains himself or simply leaving them there, he picked them up and threw them into the swirling mass of Hollows above, who eagerly ripped them apart and devoured them.

Punishment meted out, Grimmjow returned his attention to what were supposed to be his wardens. He couldn't help it. Seeing the woman all pale and horrified over what he'd just done made him laugh. Their eyes met for just an instant, but Orihime quickly turned away and continued her dry-heaving. He couldn't tell whether she was afraid of him or just plain disgusted. Either was fine with him really.

Kurosaki on the other hand still showed no signs of movement. Grimmjow grunted with annoyance.

What was he going to do with the brat? Grimmjow really wasn't in the mood to carry him all the way back like some god damned mule. On the other hand, he couldn't very well leave him here either. With all the Hollows still around he'd get eaten in a second. Grimmjow did still owe him, as much as he loathed to admit it.

Then again, weren't they even now? He _had _just saved Kurosaki's life. Grimmjow ran a hand through his hair as he considered just ditching Ichigo and returning to Hueco Mundo by himself. Without the collar, he was free to leave whenever he wanted. He looked at Orihime again. Why couldn't that damn woman make herself useful for a change? She could carry Kurosaki's stupid ass back, couldn't she? Well... she probably could, but then she wouldn't be able to defend herself if they came under attack along the way, he quickly realized. God-_dammit_, humans were so useless.

"My, my," an annoying, painfully familiar voice interrupted Grimmjow's musings. "Quite a scene we have here."

Grimmjow turned to face the new arrival, instantly on alert and above all, pissed off. "What are _you _doing here?" he sneered. He was two seconds away from drawing Panthera and permanently wiping that stupid look off the man's face.

Hirako Shinji just smiled wider when he saw Grimmjow getting defensive, revealing a set of teeth like piano keys. "I heard from Tessai that Ichigo and you had decided to team up. With all the crazy Reiatsu coming from this direction, I found myself a little worried. Decided I should come see what all the fuss was about, you know?" The leader of the Visored calmly looked over the rooftop, seeing Ichigo lying unconscious at Grimmjow's feet, Orihime on her knees, coughing and dry-heaving, and the slowly disintegrating, meager remains of what had once been a Hollow's limbs.

Innocent though he may be, Grimmjow figured there probably wasn't any point in trying to convince Hirako of that. After what happened during their last encounter, why should the man bother listening to Grimmjow?

They both drew their swords in the same instant. Grimmjow hated to admit it, but if this escalated into a serious fight, he might be in trouble. Hirako had already proven he was a lot stronger than he looked. Neither of them had gone all-out last time though, so it wasn't as if the outcome was already decided beforehand. Anything could happen in a battle, after all...

**XXX**

Orihime couldn't just sit by and let disaster unfold. If those two seriously went at it, the entire building - no, the entire block would be destroyed. The people around her always seemed oddly uncaring about collateral damage.

"It's alright, Hirako-san," she interrupted, putting an end to their stand-off before it got out of hand. "Grimmjow-san saved us." Her face still had a rather unhealthy-looking, ashen coloration.

Very slowly, Hirako lowered his sword. He was very clearly keeping his guard up however, and wouldn't take his eyes off Grimmjow. "Orihime-chan, are you sure you're alright?"

On wobbly legs, she carefully stood up. "I'm fine, thank you. Just a little... nauseous." She threw Grimmjow a look that wasn't _quite _angry, and walked over to Ichigo to put him in a more comfortable position. She did her best to avoid looking in Grimmjow's direction again; after what she'd just witnessed him do, she'd rather not be anywhere near the Arrancar for a while. What had happened with Loly and Menoly had been brutal too, but at least that hadn't been a needlessly drawn-out torture session.

"Ichigo should be okay too," she continued, taking off her uniform jacket and placing it under the teen's head so he had something soft to lay on. "He was just knocked out by Grimmjow's Reiatsu earlier. He's not injured." After making sure everything really was as it should be, she got up again and dusted herself off.

"I don't mean to be rude, Hirako-san, but why did it take so long for you to get here?" Orihime asked, trying not to sound accusatory. "We really could have used the Visored's help earlier on. Protecting the entire city with so little people just isn't possible," she trailed off. In the heat of the action, she hadn't thought too much about it, but with so many Hollows around there were bound to be some victims, both living and dead.

Shinji gave an apologetic look. "Sorry for taking our time like that. We were... distracted by something."

Orihime was pretty sure she knew what he meant. "Takahashi's Reiatsu." Judging from Shinji's startled expression, she'd hit the nail on the head.

Although he had clearly been surprised that she knew about that, it didn't take him long to recover. "You're really something, Orihime-chan," he chuckled, smiling at her. "I hadn't even realized it was him, myself. His Reiatsu was so distorted by his Hollowfication that I never would have recognized it. Rose and Hacchi made the connection," he explained. Somewhat wistfully he added: "And if that guy was around, then all of us going out into the open unprepared would have been suicidal."

He scanned the surrounding area, and Orihime realized he was looking at his comrades who had now joined the fray. "Doesn't look like he's still here though. Pretty sure we'd have noticed by now if he was."

That was something that had been bothering Orihime; why would Takahashi do all this if he was just going to run off again? It didn't make any sense, especially considering the rogue Shinigami had no interest in the world of the living to begin with. According to Urahara at least. Was he perhaps doing this in an attempt to get rid of the people allied with Urahara? They _had _been giving him a rather rough time over the past few days. Then again, he should know that regular Hollows, no matter how many he sent after them, wouldn't be able to kill people on their level. So the question remained: why do all this?

Orihime gasped when she realized the truth. How had she not figured it out earlier? "This is all just a distraction!"

Grimmjow's head snapped in her direction. "What? What are you talking about?"

In her momentary panic, Grimmjow's actions from earlier were pushed to the back of her mind. "Takahashi wouldn't attack this city for no reason," she hurriedly explained to the confused Arrancar. "While we were fighting, he must have made his move! We have to warn Soul Society- if it's not too late already!"

She froze when Hirako firmly laid a hand on her shoulder; how he had gotten so close without her noticing was a mystery to her. She hadn't even seen him start to move. "Calm down, Orihime. Urahara already came to the same conclusion."

"Then the shopkeeper went after him?" Grimmjow asked. He still had his sword out, but at least he wasn't pointing it at Shinji anymore.

Shinji nodded in response. He had already sheathed his own blade. "He contacted us when the invasion began. He left for Hueco Mundo with Yoruichi."

That explained why the two hadn't come to help. "Why Hueco Mundo?" Orihime pressed Shinji. "Are they still looking for whatever it is he hid there? Shouldn't they be going after him directly instead?"

Shinji snorted humorlessly. "Good luck finding him. He's a Kido master, you know? If he doesn't want to be found, he won't be. Especially in a place as crowded as Soul Society. He'll blend right in."

Orihime realized she'd shown her naïve side again. While she was far from unintelligent, she often didn't think things through enough before taking action. Aizen had not hesitated to take advantage of that shortcoming during the war.

"Well, I should probably go help finishing this up," Shinji spoke with a distinct lack of enthusiasm, looking up at the noticeably thinned-out swarm of Hollows above. Addressing Orihime and Grimmjow, he asked: "what are you two going to do?"

"I'd like to help out, but I should probably stay with Ichigo for now," Orihime mused aloud. She was about to say that she would look after him until he regained consciousness when Grimmjow took the matter out of her hands.

To her and Shinji's immense confusion, Grimmjow put his sword away, calmly walked over to Ichigo, picked him up without saying a word, and slung him over his shoulder in a perfect fireman's carry. Almost serenely, like this was something he did every day, he started to walk away from them.

"W- what do you think yer doing?!" the former captain snapped out of his stupor, stepping in to block Grimmjow's path.

Grimmjow just flashed him a cocky grin. "You heard the woman. Can't leave Sleeping Beauty here behind, all on his lonesome. I thought I'd be a _nice guy_ and bring his useless ass home."

The ridiculously exaggerated (and obviously fake) tone in which he spoke the words 'nice guy' almost made Orihime shudder.

"Bullshit!" Shinji exclaimed, saying what Orihime was thinking, but was too reserved to vocalize.

"Don't worry about the princess," Grimmjow waved him off, still smirking in an obvious attempt to antagonize Hirako, but adopting a more serious tone. He made a shrugging motion, repositioning the unconscious teen a bit. "I won't do anything to him. Besides, it'll get me out of dealing with you," Grimmjow added happily in a mocking, sugary sweet tone, revealing the real reason behind his sudden concern for Ichigo's well-being.

Obviously, that wasn't about to fly with Shinji. The man was about to resort to more drastic measures, and Orihime knew this could quickly turn ugly for everyone involved if tensions rose.

"Wait! It's alright," she attempted to defuse the situation.

The disbelief on his face was clearly humorous to Grimmjow, who shamelessly began to laugh at Shinji. "Whaddaya mean it's alright?!" he barked at Orihime. "We're talking about a freakin' Espada here! Yer just gonna leave Ichigo alone with 'im?!"

"I know, I know!" she quickly spoke, holding up her hands. "But Grimmjow isn't lying; he won't hurt him. I know he wont," she added, trying to convince herself of that as much as she was trying to convince Shinji.

The Visored started sputtering in protest, but she decided to ignore him. "Please bring him back to Urahara's safely," she addressed Grimmjow. "I'll follow once we're done dealing with this. Don't let anything happen to him, Grimmjow-san."

"Yeah, yeah," the man muttered, roughly pushing Shinji aside as he moved to the edge of the roof. He leaned forward a bit, getting ready to use Sonido. Before he took off, he grinned saucily at Shinji again. To Orihime, it looked more like he was baring his teeth at the Visored. Then, with a low hum, he just seemed to wink out of existence, taking Ichigo with him.

Orihime and Shinji looked at the place they had disappeared for a few moments. "Are ya sure this is alright?" Shinji asked eventually.

Orihime sighed softly. "Honestly? I'm trying very hard not to think about it. Let's just hurry up and see if we're needed anywhere. I'd like to get back as soon as possible."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in Soul Society:<p>

Yamamoto stepped into his temporary office in Squad 2's barracks. Captain Soi Fon had graciously lent him and his officers whatever chambers her Division could spare. While the room was rather on the small side and quite dusty after years of being used as storage space, it was serviceable.

The Head Captain was having a long and difficult day. They were still dealing with the aftereffects of Katsumi's attack, so any additional complications were quite unwelcome at the moment. As such, the Hollow invasion currently underway in Karakura was something he really could have done without. Fortunately there were plenty of capable combatants already there, so Soul Society's intervention had not been required.

Moreover, he'd received some good news this morning: Captain Kurotsuchi had regained consciousness thanks to his Lieutenant's treatment. The Gotei had many skilled healers among its ranks, but those two were special cases - in more ways than one. Only the two Kurotsuchis knew how their bodies worked.

As soon as he'd woken up, Mayuri had a message sent to Yamamoto: the details of how he had negated Katsumi's lighting.

There was a fairly simple trick to it: electricity always followed the path of least resistance. Katsumi's Shikai worked by infusing thunderclouds with his own Reiatsu. This Reiatsu then trickled downward, effectively creating a pathway toward the ground for the lightning to flow through. All that Mayuri had done when he was being targeted was extend said pathway by manipulating his own Reiatsu, creating a more efficient route for the electricity than through his body. In essence, he had turned himself into a humanoid lightning rod. Yamamoto was somewhat disappointed in himself for not having worked out the mechanics himself.

Now came the real problem. That Hollow invasion had come at a very convenient time. Too convenient. It was obvious from the start that it was nothing but a distraction to keep Urahara and the Visored busy. There was only one person who could possibly stand to gain from such an act.

The oldest Captain directed his gaze to a seemingly inconspicuous area in between a bookshelf and a potted plant. "Come on out. I know you're there," he muttered gruffly.

Katsumi snickered softly to himself as he dispelled his camouflage. "Figured that wouldn't work."

"Of course it didn't," Yamamoto huffed, sounding annoyed. "Compared to Sousuke Aizen's Complete Hypnosis, that concealing Kido is just a petty magic trick."

Katsumi stared intently at Yamamoto, not offering a reply. It remained silent while the two sides inspected one another.

"Why are you here?" Yamamoto eventually asked. "Surely you don't intend to fight me in this small, dusty office?"

"Obviously not," Katsumi calmly replied as he strode over to Yamamoto's desk and leaned against it. "I have a proper battleground already waiting. I prepared it specifically for this fight." The younger man smiled as he watched the gears in Yamamoto's head turning. He had almost literally told him that a trap was about to be sprung, yet Yamamoto's stubborn pride would never allow him to turn tail and flee from his own military's barracks.

One corner of Katsumi's mouth crooked up, just a bit – he had him right where he wanted him, and they both knew it. "Before we get into the good stuff though, I wanted to talk to you for a bit."

Keeping his eyes firmly locked on Katsumi, Yamamoto closed the door. The last thing either of them wanted was for a random person walking down the hallway to spot the rogue Shinigami and initiate a battle within the barracks. The collateral damage would be horrific.

"Let us talk then," Yamamoto answered, adopting a more relaxed stance. Naturally he maintained the utmost of caution, but at least he was sure that there would be no sneak attacks or other underhanded measures. Not yet, at least. "I find myself curious as to your sudden change in style." He gestured to Katsumi's hair, which had been dyed black. "Is that how you fooled the gatekeeper? I believe that is a woman's uniform you're wearing though." His gaze lingered now on the suspiciously loose-hanging robes near Katsumi's chest area. "It must have been a thorough disguise. A shame I did not get to see the final result."

The desk made noticeable creaking sounds as Katsumi involuntarily tensed up and nearly crushed the wood between his fingers. Yamamoto was pleased to see he still knew how to get under the younger man's skin, even after all this time.

Katsumi pushed off against the desk, coming just a little closer. "Don't stall. I have just a single question for you Yama-ji." The tension in the room noticeably spiked. Finally, they had come to the main issue. The reason behind everything Katsumi had done over the last few days.

"Why," Katsumi demanded, unable to completely prevent his voice from shaking, "did you try to kill me?"

Yamamoto slowly let out a heavy sigh. It was as if all the weariness he had accumulated from over a millennium of being Head Captain had been infused in it. "I... never wanted to kill you." The rogue Shinigami appeared stunned when he heard the hesitation in his voice. It did not happen often that a crack showed in that impenetrable armor.

"I was foolish," Yamamoto angrily continued. "A hundred and twenty years ago, when the Seireitei was besieged by Vasto Lorde, you decided to trust me with your secret. You revealed your Hollow abilities in the knowledge that they would allow us to hasten the end of the conflict. Many of our soldiers' lives were spared because of that."

Yamamoto briefly looked away. "After seeing what you were capable of, I believed we could use your powers to infiltrate Hueco Mundo. We would have been able to strike directly at the Hollows' homeworld, possibly even ending the eternal conflict between them and us." His brow tensed as he adopted a sterner look. "For eight years, I kept this to myself. In those eight years, 422 Shinigami were killed and consumed by Hollows. After that, I could not remain silent any longer. I went to the Council of 46, convinced they would share my views. Surely they would have realized what an enormous advantage this could be for us?"

"I could not have been more wrong," he bit out. His hand clenched around his staff. "Those fools only saw what was right in front of them, never even considering the idea," he spat bitterly. "Not only did they question my capabilities as a commander, they demanded I rectify the problem immediately."

He finally looked at Katsumi again. Sincere regret was visible in those ancient eyes. "All my protests were overruled. You were ordered to be put to death immediately and without trial. I am truly sorry." It had been a black day for Soul Society. Not only had they lost their greatest opportunity yet to deal a crushing blow to the Hollows, they had lost one of their most powerful fighters as well.

At first, it looked like the rogue had gone completely catatonic by what had just been revealed to him. Then, his Reiatsu started to rise threateningly.

"You..." he grit out from between clenched teeth. "I thought you'd just wanted to get rid of me because you though I was too dangerous. That my Hollow side made me a ticking time bomb. But you revealed my abilities to those corrupt, close-minded senile old bastards because you thought they'd see the value in them?!" he roared, face twisted by rage.

"How long have you worked for those incompetent bigots, Yama-ji? You of all people should have seen their answer coming!" The wooden floor and furniture began to smolder as arcs of electricity jumped between them and Katsumi's body.

Yamamoto picked up his staff and let it revert back to its sword form. The moment of truth had finally arrived. "I did know. However, considering the tremendous potential benefits, I was obligated to try if there was even the slightest chance of success."

The floor beneath Katsumi's feet caught fire. No doubt everyone in the barracks had sensed his presence by now. "Then even though you knew it would happen, you still decided to execute their sentence?!" Yamamoto registered the distinct smell of ozone as Katsumi's Reiatsu electrified the air. "You could have warned me beforehand! You could have given me a chance to escape! But no! You just groveled at their feet like usual and stabbed me in the back!"

The full force of his Reiatsu slammed into Yamamoto. The old man's eyes widened for a moment when he underwent its effects; a terrible, primal sensation of fear that rapidly spread throughout his body, like ice running through his veins. While it wouldn't impair his abilities in the least thanks to his own immense Reiatsu, Yamamoto found himself wondering. Spiritual Pressure alone should not have such an effect on him. Not even when his opponent was someone close to his own level. He had seen far too much combat to let himself be intimidated by anyone. Was this also an ability granted to him by his Hollow side?

"I've heard enough. We're finishing this right now!" Katsumi slammed his free hand down on the floor, and a tear in reality split apart the wooden floorboards.

Having no intention of falling into a Garganta, Yamamoto quickly jumped away. Katsumi however, had of course known he would try to evade.

The ceiling was blown to splinters as a hundred glowing bars rained down on Yamamoto. '_He set up a Hyapporankan as a booby trap?'_ The old man did not have much time to ponder how he had managed that.

Dodging the spell at that point would have been difficult, but there was no real need for Yamamoto to do so. Hyapporankan was just a mid-level Bakudo. It wouldn't do any damage, and Yamamoto could free himself of it easily enough.

It did however put a stop to his momentum, and gave Katsumi the extra second he needed. "Strike, Raiden!" he called out as he jumped upward as well, raising his blade high. Electricity surged along its length, all that power being directed into a small sphere of neon green plasma at the tip. Katsumi brought the sword down, and the orb of crackling fury was released, heading straight for Yamamoto.

The Head Captain countered by wordlessly releasing Ryuujin Jakka, the clash between flame and lightning causing an explosion that destroyed what was left of the tiny office. He had remained unharmed, but Katsumi had achieved his goal. The force of the blast slung him down into the black void beneath, and the portal closed behind him as soon as he was through.

Seeing the light above him vanish as he fell into the black depths, Yamamoto bit out a curse. It had been a simple, perfectly executed trap, and he had been caught in it. As he tumbled through the dark space between worlds, Yamamato decided to prepare for what came next. He turned himself around, his Haori falling off his shoulders and disappearing into the nothingness as he did so. Whatever awaited him on the other side would not be easy to overcome. Clenching Ryuujin Jakka's hilt, he launched himself into the abyss. If he arrived first, then he would have the advantage.

Katsumi had been right. This would indeed end today.

* * *

><p>Near Las Noches' outer wall:<p>

Urahara realized he might have been enjoying himself a little too much given the situation. He just couldn't help himself. It wasn't every day you got the chance to personally examine a powerful, ancient spell such as this one.

Finally, they had discovered what Takahashi had been hiding so desperately. Urahara had almost felt disappointed. After all the trouble Takahashi had gone through to keep it hidden earlier on, now he used a third-rate cloaking field as its one and only defense?

In the vast shadow cast by Las Noches' dome lay a massive slab of white, smooth stone. Five tablets stood along its edge in a circular pattern. It was one of the Kido Corps' greatest inventions – a spell capable of eternally imprisoning any Shinigami, no matter how powerful they may be.

The Seal of Izanagi.

Urahara let his hands wander over the smooth surface of one of the tablets as he examined the complicated inscriptions on its surface.

"How the hell did he even move this?" Yoruichi complained aloud as she walked along the edge of the stone. She was on the lookout in case Katsumi returned. If he'd left it this poorly-guarded, he would undoubtedly be coming back soon. "It's easily ten meters across and weighs a ton! I don't see that skinny bastard lifting it over his head."

"Perhaps he has a way to make it levitate," Urahara suggested absently. "Or he really did carry it over his head. He looks rather muscular when he's using his Resurrection." He backtracked to the one he'd identified as the primary tablet earlier. Izanagi's Seal was an incredibly sophisticated spell. You had to admire the Kido corps' talent for creating something like this.

Each of the tablets carried its own set of instructions. The combined effect of all five was to create an indestructible cage, formed by warping the very fabric of space and bending the flow of time to one's liking. Even so, that man had managed to escape. Not just that, but he'd even managed to recreate his former prison. Urahara wondered if he could take that to mean Takahashi had somehow remained conscious while trapped within the original Seal, and had studied its inner workings from the inside. That in and of itself should have already been impossible.

The primary tablet was the spell's ignition key, the one that would start the entire chain reaction. Without it, the rest of the spell would be useless. He had to find a way to destroy it, and fast.

Tessai's knowledge would have been invaluable here, but protecting the citizens of Karakura came first. With all the defensive spells Tessai had at his disposal, he was far more suited to such a task than Urahara was.

"Now then," he muttered to himself, "how am I going to dismantle this thing?" Brute force simply wasn't an option. You could not mess with spells that dealt with space-time and expect to walk away from it. Carelessly damaging them could unbalance the very fabric of reality, with disastrous consequences.

Still, he had to hurry. At any moment now, Takahashi could-

"Kisuke!" Before he had time to react in any way, Yoruichi already slammed into him at top speed, knocking the wind out of him. They sailed through the air – one more gracefully than the other – and landed in the sand a fair distance away. Yoruichi quickly put him down again. It was a good thing she had remained vigilant. He had been so absorbed in studying the tablet that he hadn't noticed the Garganta opening up above him.

The creator of the sealing array stood before them then, wearing an expression close to panic. "What did you do?!" Takahashi furiously demanded. He raised his blade over his head, charging up another arc bomb at the tip. His face contorted with rage. If the Seal had been sabotaged, then this would be the end for him.

Urahara and Yoruichi both prepared to fight back, but the appearance of another Garganta spared them the trouble.

The Head Captain himself came falling out of the tear in space, landing smack-dab in the center of the Seal. The exact second he touched down, it activated on its own. The primary tablet lit up, making Urahara's hair stand on end from the massive release of energy. In a matter of milliseconds, a transparent blue dome formed over the stone slab, and Takahashi and Yamamoto were locked in on top of the platform.

Looking relieved, Takahashi let out a breathy laugh and lowered his blade. The crackling orb of plasma at its tip fizzled out. "Looks like you didn't have enough time to sabotage it, Urahara Kisuke."

Urahara lowered his cane, knowing there was nothing he could do to interfere at this point. "I admit, I had quite a hard time with it. If you'd given me five more minutes, I believe I may have gotten somewhere."

"Enough talking," Yamamoto interrupted their conversation. "You and I both know that my time is limited. Now that you've gone so far as to use Izanagi, you leave me with no choice but to destroy you utterly."

Due to the nature of the spell, the conflict would turn heavily in Takahashi's favor if he waited any longer. The oldest Captain was forced to unleash his full power from the get-go. "Bankai," the ancient commander spoke gravely, the word alone striking fear into the two observers. "Zanka no Tachi."

Urahara and Yoruichi looked at each other with near identical, shocked expressions. The Head Captain's second stage release may not have been as flashy as some others, but that sure didn't stop it from being intimidating as hell.

The flames vanished. In the old man's hand, he now held a charred, brittle looking blade. That frail appearance belied the monstrous power it contained. One slash from that thing and you were done for. It didn't just kill, it erased its enemies from existence.

Once again accompanied by flashes of purple lightning, Takahashi transformed into his Hollow form in an attempt to stand up to Yamamoto's full power – but something was clearly different this time.

Wings.

While they looked terribly deformed and could not possibly be used for flight, that was undeniably what they were. They emerged from just below his shoulder blades, looking far too thick and heavy to be practical, and would have easily spanned three meters when stretched out fully. They were stark white, leathery, and sported similar black markings to the rest of Takahashi's Hollowfied body. They too were enveloped in a shroud of plasma. Urahara was very curious as to how exactly that lightning armor worked.

"Your powers are still evolving?" Yamamoto asked when he laid eyes on the new appendages.

It was hard to be sure, but Urahara was pretty sure Takahashi was smiling underneath his mask. "I learned some new tricks, Yama-ji. Just for you," he replied in that distorted tone.

"How flattering," the old man countered dryly. In the next moment he launched himself at his opponent, bringing down Zanka no Tachi to not simply bisect him, but blow away his entire midsection.

In response, Takahashi's wings seemed to bend the wrong way, overlapping and covering his front like a massive organic shield. Yamamoto's blade cut through them like a very hot knife through molten butter. A perfectly straight cut split both of the appendages into two halves, almost all the way to their base. By quickly extending the injured wings and pushing forward, Takahashi forced his adversary to back off again.

Going by what he had just witnessed, Urahara figured those wings must serve a solely defensive purpose. When up against Zanka No Tachi however, they may as well have been made of paper mache for all the good they had done, he thought.

"As insanely powerful as ever," Takahashi muttered to himself as he observed his slashed wings. The rest of him was still in one piece: the wings had at least managed to maintain enough distance between Yamamoto and himself for the blade to fall short of his vital areas. Rather than blood, white liquid came pouring from the wounded areas.

Yoruichi had already told him about this after the fight in the Seireitei, but this was the first time Urahara personally saw Katsumi's regenerative ability in action. She had told him he was capable of rapidly healing minor injuries, with more severe ones taking a long time. That description did not do justice to what he was witnessing here right now.

The liquid bubbled intensely like boiling water, splashing about and forming sticky web-like threads in between the severed parts of the wings. Following that, the flaps of wing were pulled back together, missing tissue was regrown at absurd rates, and then the white froth receded again. In a span of three seconds, all traces of damage had vanished.

"That's cheating! He couldn't do it that fast before!" Yoruichi blurted out.

Urahara carefully analyzed Takahashi's transformed appearance. He had only caught a glimpse of it once before, when Takahashi had nearly broken into his lab through the open Garganta. It had only been for a second, but Urahara had seen the mask quite clearly. It had had just a single purple marking on it back then.

Now, there were three. Two lines leading to the lowest spikes on his mask - the ones following his jawline - and another line that ran along a spike at eye-height, on the left side of his face. Each line ran from the tip of the spike to the nearest eye-hole, at which point they spread out more, giving off the impression that he had on eye shadow. The effect involuntarily reminded Urahara of Grimmjow, with the blue marks on the young man's face.

Two new marks, did that mean he'd obtained two more powers? Faster regeneration and the wings for defense? He said he'd 'learned new tricks', plural. Question was, were those really the only two?

"Grow as many extra body parts as you wish," Yamamoto huffed, seeming unimpressed. "They won't help you against my blade. I suggest you grow another head, to help you realize your folly." He got ready to strike again. "Zanka No Tachi: North," he began. "Tenchi Kai-" The dome shifted from blue to fiery red as the second tablet activated.

Yamamoto's technique was interrupted as his blade burst into flames once more.

Everyone save for Takahashi seemed quite surprised by this new development. "He reverted to his Shikai? But why?" Yoruichi asked.

"It's the second tablet," Urahara answered. "It interferes with the link between Shinigami and Zanpakuto. It shouldn't have activated this quickly though."

At first, Yamamoto remained completely motionless. Clearly, he too hadn't counted on losing his Bankai this early on in the fight. "I see now," he slowly spoke. "This is why you invaded Soul Society so recklessly the first time around. You needed my Reiatsu to prepare the Seal. To speed up its activation sequence."

"Bingo," Katsumi assented. He put his left arm forward. "There was plenty of it in here after you hit me with that fireball." While he spoke, the third tablet already lit up.

Both combatants appeared to sink into the ground from Urahara's point of view. Upon closer inspection, he saw that a good chunk of the stone slab had begun to lower. The five tablets along with the outer edge of the circle stayed where they were. It stopped moving at about half a meter of depth, making it look like the two were now standing in a big, empty swimming pool made of stone.

Yoruichi fidgeted somewhat nervously. "Can't we do anything, Kisuke?"

"No. There's no way to get inside the Seal. Those two are effectively in a separate dimension now."

Yoruichi looked at the two men again. "But they're right there! Even if we can't break through ourselves, aren't there other options? Light and sound seem to get through just fine."

He shook his head. "What we're seeing and hearing are projections. It's like a TV screen. We can only see and hear them because the Kido corps specifically added that function. Otherwise, they themselves would not know what happened on the inside."

He turned to face her. "There is something else you can do though. The other captains have to be alerted to this. If Takahashi wins, we'll need back-up if we want to take him down."

She hesitated. "What if he wins before I get back?"

"Then I'm sure I'll manage somehow." Reassuringly, he smiled at her. "Besides, I doubt you'll take _too_ long. Or do they just hand out titles like 'Goddess of Flash' to everyone these days?" he teased slyly.

Yoruichi barked out a laugh. "I'm gonna make you eat those words, Kisuke. I'll be back before you have time to regret ever saying them." She grinned mischievously. As she prepared to leave, she gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't do anything crazy while I'm gone, you hear me?" she said seriously, before taking off in the direction of the Garganta with a burst of Shunpo. Urahara smiled as he watched her disappear behind a dune.

For now, he would just continue to watch the battle. During their exchange, two more sections of the platform had lowered. The Seal was starting to look like a miniature amphitheater, and the two combatants were forced to jump around in order to utilize all available space.

Urahara could see where this was going. The pair clashed violently numerous times, but Yamamoto never did enough damage to put Takahashi out of commission. With just his Shikai, he was doomed to run out of time. Takahashi's defenses were too strong for Yamamoto to deal a decisive blow. Not in so little time. In just a few more minutes, the fourth tablet would activate, and then this match would be all but decided.

Urahara just hoped the old man held out long enough for backup to get here.

Realizing his back was to the wall, Yamamoto decided to switch strategies. His only chance of winning was to throw all caution to the wind, and just hit his opponent with everything he could realistically throw at him.

Physical attacks were clearly out: the lightning armor covering Takahashi would ensure Yamamoto himself would receive damage with every hit, and _he_ couldn't regenerate. Shunpo had limited uses here. The arena was too small, and the terrain too uneven for it to be used reliably. A sneak attack was doomed to fail.

That left him with just Kido and his Shikai's abilities. For a man with over a millennium of combat experience, that was plenty.

"Hado 77: Soren Sokatsui!" Yamamoto bellowed. The blue flames exploded from his palm, intent on consuming everything in their path. They crashed into their target, engulfing him in a sea of fire.

The Head Captain closed in, calling out "Taimatsu!" as another, much more powerful flame from his sword blew away the first one. Urahara heard a pained grunt, and a massive, burning white wing emerged from the whirling inferno. It soared up to the roof of the dome, where the hellfire consumed it and left nothing but ashes.

Then, Yamamoto jumped backwards, launching another stream of flames from his blade while in the air. Takahashi brought up his remaining wing to bear the brunt of the attack, even as the other one began to regrow.

"Sajo Sabaku!" As soon as Yamamoto landed he sent golden, glowing chains after Takahashi that ensnared him and folded his own wing around him like wrapping paper. Not done yet, Yamamato prepared to launch his finisher: "Hado 91: Senjukotentaiho!"

The entire sequence of events happened so fast Urahara barely had time to be impressed. Despite being cast with no incantation, the spell still held a frightening amount of power. Multiple purple comets formed out of thin air and homed in on their target. As they gathered in one focal point right beside Takahashi's chest, Urahara realized it would probably be wise to close his eyes.

A terrible scream resounded from within the dome. Even with his eyes firmly shut, the spell's furious light made Urahara see a burning red haze. By all rights, nothing should be left of him after getting hit by that point-blank.

As the light died down, Urahara opened his eyes again. The entire dome was now filled with thick, black smoke. No sound emerged from it. And then, the tables turned.

"Oh no." Another light cut through the black cloud. It wasn't anywhere near the intensity of the earlier explosion, but felt more... ominous, somehow. Following the light's appearance, the smoke in the dome began to circulate rapidly. Something at the bottom of the Seal was sucking it in.

Once the tablets became visible again, Urahara's suspicion was confirmed: the fourth one was lit. That meant that the prison had been unlocked, and it was eager to receive its next guest.

Yamamoto jumped to the highest level of the Seal, getting as far away from the eerie light at its center as he could. This proved quite difficult, as the Seal was trying its hardest to suck him in. He grabbed on to one of the Tablets for support.

As the smoke swirled into the vortex beneath, the one who'd fallen victim to the spell from earlier became visible once more. Urahara almost couldn't believe he was still in one piece – more or less.

Breathing in heavily, Takahashi slowly pushed himself up off the floor. There was still smoke coming from his body. All that was left of his wings were sad little stumps on his back. They had stopped regenerating. 'Burnt' didn't even begin to describe the state of his chest area. The upper part of his sternum was exposed and charred pitch black. The skin around it had melted and then hardened again, leaving an ugly, deformed wound. Unlike the remains of his wings, that injury was slowly healing.

"I'm... impressed, Yama-ji." Takahashi grit out with considerable effort. His breaths were shallow. Five purple markings now decorated his mask, glowing intensely. "You even... forced Hyperion to get off his ass and help me." The formerly black markings on his body were now radiating that same purple light. The ones on his chest were brightest of all.

Most likely, those marking had reinforced his Hierro somehow, Urahara deduced. He couldn't possibly have survived otherwise. Before Urahara had a chance to properly observe the phenomenon, they went back to normal. The two new lines on his mask vanished as well, with the remaining three going dull.

"Again in the chest," Katsumi muttered. His hand came to rest beside his Hollow hole. "Right here it was. You remember it, I hope? When you stabbed me from behind with that blade?" he gestured at Ryuujin Jakka, still burning intensely in Yamamoto's hand, squeezed between his palm and the tablet. "I certainly do. The sensation of your own spinal cord melting is one you don't forget easily."

"I apologize," Yamamoto spoke, "I would have gone for the head, but you might have dodged."

Takahashi chuckled weakly at that. "Alas, our time is almost up. Any last words?"

"Don't do this, Katsumi," the old man replied forcefully. He was straining to hang on to the tablet now. Only he appeared to be affected by the vortex's drain. "Sealing me away will have consequences you can't even begin to imagine! Stop this foolishness!"

"Ah, but I _can _imagine," he admonished, wagging his index finger at Yamamoto. "With you gone, a new Commander will have to be appointed. Since Ukitake is ill, the position will undoubtedly go to Shunsui instead." He narrowed his eyes. "Shunsui won't bend over backwards whenever Central 46 asks him to, like you always did. With him in charge and you – Soul Society's history personified – gone, there _will _be changes."

"Then this is not just revenge on me, but on Central 46 as well? For their involvement in Watanabe Aoi's death?" Yamamoto shook his head sadly, seeming to emanate all the weariness he'd accumulated over his two-thousand-year lifetime. "Very well then. Have it your way. If you dispel Izanagi, I shall step down as Captain-Commander and pass the position on to Shunsui."

Both Urahara and Takahashi failed utterly to hide their surprise.

"If that is what it takes to avert disaster, I will do so." The old man slid a little further to the edge of the stone circle. He was hanging on to the tablet with just his fingertips now, his sword clenched between the tablet and his hand. "Please, Katsumi. Hurry!"

The man-turned-monster hesitated. "What is this disaster you speak of?" he questioned suspiciously. "It seems rather convenient. I seal you away and the world goes to shit? You'll have to do better than that."

Yamamoto grit his teeth as his feet came off the ground and he dangled from the tablet like a leaf caught in a storm. Seeing no other option, he readjusted his grip, letting go of his blade in the process. The sword instantly made a beeline for the swirling vortex below and was swallowed by it.

Seeing that ancient man hanging on for dear life was completely surreal. The oldest, most horrifically powerful man in Soul Society's history was billowing in the wind like laundry hung out to dry. His robes and beard fluttered about wildly, completely shattering his dignified image. It might have been the first time in his life that Urahara was utterly speechless.

Using all of his strength, Yamamoto pulled himself closer to the tablet. "I cannot tell you! Not you, not after what you have become!" He made eye-contact with Urahara. Mindful of Takahashi's eyes on him, he began to mouth words to Urahara, knowing the scientist could lip-read.

'U-ki-ta-ke' Urahara decoded the signals, followed by 'Repentance Tower'. Urahara subtly nodded to show he had understood the message.

Takahashi still hadn't done anything. He seemed to be arguing with himself – quite literally, at that.

"Maybe we should- but then... what if it's true?"

Was he conversing with his inner Hollow? Urahara listened intently, trying to make sense of what he heard. Unfortunately, he was only privy to one half the conversation.

"No, don't!" Takahashi called out in a panic, and froze up. A deeply disturbing chuckle emanated from behind his mask. "Can't have you going soft on me now, King." It was astounding how the same voice could suddenly sound so very different. Hyperion raised his arm in Yamamoto's direction. Energy gathered around his closed fist. "Goodbye, old man." He fired the Bala.

Yamamoto let go.

Urahara watched as he fell. Yamamoto's arm desperately reached out to the tablet, but he was already too far away to grab on. The back of his hand was scratched. Katsumi's Bala hadn't done much damage, but it had been enough to knock his hand away from the tablet. Ironically, it was the first and only attack Takahashi had used since the start of the battle. The man hadn't had a single chance to switch to offense during Yamamoto's relentless onslaught. Even so, he had won in the end.

Yamamoto was pulled into the light, and was gone.

With the sound of a gong being hit, the prison was closed off, and the light faded. Urahara couldn't see the bottom of the Seal from where he was, but he knew that the lowest level had once again become flat stone. Now, the Seal would return to its original shape. The segments would each rise up again, with each one placing an additional dimensional barrier between Yamamoto and the outside world. Afterward, the fifth and final tablet would activate. It would then start to drain the captive's Reiryoku, using it to power the Seal for as long as the subject remained within.

Four dimensional barriers in total. Five, if you counted the dome. All that on top of being trapped within a pocket dimension while the link with your Zanpakuto was broken, your Reiryoku was being sapped continuously, and time was slowed to a crawl.

Urahara had to ask. "Takahashi-san," he spoke to the kneeling, unmoving figure. "How did you do it? How did you escape?"

Urahara was relieved to hear that the rogue's voice had returned to normal. "You're a clever man, Urahara Kisuke," he replied softly. "Much smarter than I am. So I find myself wondering: how can you not realize what the answer is, when you're looking right at it?"

Urahara felt very, very foolish then. The Seal interfered with the link Shinigami and Zanpakuto. It had been designed specifically to deal with the most powerful of Soul Reapers.

It had _not_ been made with a Visored's Inner Hollow in mind. Being regular Shinigami, he, Tessai and Ukitake had never even considered the possibility. They did not know how an Inner Hollow manifested itself, and what influence it had over its host. The very first thing they should have done upon learning of his escape, was to contact Hirako's group and ask them about every single aspect of their Hollow abilities.

"In a complicated dilemma, the most obvious answers tend to be dismissed, since we can't imagine the truth to be so simple," the rogue Shinigami mused. He looked gravely at Urahara. A dark aura began to emanate from his body. "Out of respect for the friendship I used to share with Yoruichi, I will tell you this: in a few minutes, this barrier will be dispelled. By then, I will no longer be myself."

He leaned in closer. "I suggest you get far away from here before that happens."

Urahara bowed his head. "Thank you for the warning, Takahashi-san." He began to walk away, intending to follow the man's advice. When Yoruichi returned with the Captains, he would join them. Together, they would stand a far better chance of dealing with the monster that was about to be unleashed.

"I will try to make your death a painless one." He disappeared in a flicker of Shunpo, leaving the broken man alone in his last moments of sanity.

* * *

><p>Back in the world of the living:<p>

Ichigo began to stir. His body was waking up, but his mind was still playing catch-up.

The first thing he became aware of was that he must have passed out at some point. The second was the horrible wave of nausea that came over him.

With a groan, he managed to sit upright. He massaged his forehead in an attempt to get rid of any lingering disorientation, then opened his eyes.

"Huh." Now how had he ended up here again, he wondered.

Ichigo found himself in Grimmjow's room once more. He started upon seeing a blue-haired figure lying on the futon next to his own, but it was only the Arrancar's Gigai. It didn't seem to be occupied at the moment.

"Hello?" he called out, but no response came. Everyone must still have been busy with the Hollow invasion.

Ichigo supposed he might as well get something to eat then. Now that the nausea was subsiding, he realized he was starving. He stood up and straightened out his school uniform.

Hopefully, the others would get back soon. Going out on his own was suicide with that many Hollows around, but he really wanted to go home and take a shower already. He'd been wearing the same clothes all day, and they were starting to smell.

As he made his way to the door, something hit him in the forehead. Hard.

"Ow!" Ichigo quickly took a step back, rubbing the sting out of the offended area. "What the hell was that?" He scanned his surroundings carefully, but there was nothing there. Curiously, he looked at Grimmjow's Gigai again. It _was _unoccupied... right?

He was about to berate himself for being stupid – Grimmjow didn't have a sense of humor after all, certainly not one that juvenile – when the damn thing suddenly arched up off the bed and desperately sucked in air, like some cheap jump-scare in a Horror movie.

Ichigo was ashamed to admit it had worked. "Son of a bitch!" he cursed, backing up against the wall in his momentary panic. "Why did you do that?!" he demanded angrily, heart hammering away in his chest.

"What are _you _getting all pissy for?" Grimmjow complained as he struggled to get up. After being inactive for so long, his Gigai didn't seem to be responding too well to his commands. "Don't ignore me like that, you shithead!" He uttered some more profanities while he struggled to get his limbs moving properly. Eventually he succeeded in standing up.

Now that his heart rate had gone back down to more acceptable levels, Ichigo removed himself from the wall and tried to act like he hadn't totally freaked out just then. With a little luck, Grimmjow would have been too distracted by his Gigai booting up to notice. "What do you mean, I ignored you? I thought you weren't in your Gigai?"

The Arrancar looked at him questioningly. As they stared at each other, Ichigo got briefly distracted by Grimmjow's altered appearance. While he'd seen it before, it was still somewhat bewildering being able to see the man's entire face. He looked like a regular, handsome twenty-something year-old man without that ghastly jawbone stuck to his cheek.

"I wasn't," Grimmjow eventually replied, still wearing that confused expression. Clearly, there was some sort of disconnect happening here. "I got in just now. Didn't you hear me talking to you? Even flicked you in the forehead, still got no reaction."

"That was you?" Ichigo would have gotten angry, but the implication behind Grimmjow's words left him feeling numb instead.

Grimmjow seemed to be catching on as well. "You couldn't see me, huh?" Ichigo didn't answer, but he didn't need to. There was a pregnant pause. "Well..." Grimmjow started somewhat uncomfortably, scratching the back of his head. "You knew it would happen, right?"

"I did. It's just... I didn't even get to say goodbye to Rukia or my other friends from Soul Society." He absently scratched his cheek, not believing he was having a heart-to-heart with Grimmjow of all people.

"Whaddaya mean, 'say goodbye'?" The Arrancar frowned. "Weren't you gonna try and get your powers back?"

"I was. I mean, I am!" he quickly corrected himself. "It might take me a while though."

"Heh." Grimmjow smiled at that. Not a smirk, or even a grin but an actual, genuine smile. "Good. Don't forget: you still owe me a rematch." He walked away then, heading out into the hallway.

Ichigo watched him leave with his mouth hanging open. Part of him believed he must have been hallucinating just now. It _had _to have been real though. The image of the bloodthirsty Sexta Espada gently smiling was not something he could just dream up. His imagination was nowhere near _that _good.

Chuckling softly to himself, Ichigo chased after Grimmjow. "You sure you should be cheering me up like that?" he asked playfully as he jogged past him. "You should be more careful, or we might actually start to get along."

He could hear Grimmjow's footsteps abruptly halting. Just before he turned the corner, Ichigo glanced back at what was behind him. Grimmjow was frozen in place, his expression a glorious mix of horror, disbelief and total bewilderment.

Ichigo quickly moved on, trying very hard not to laugh within earshot. In his opinion, that comment had been completely worth it.

The poor teen was completely unaware of the events he had just set in motion.

* * *

><p>AN: Aaand, that's a wrap. I'm in a hurry, so I'll keep this short.

Next update will be really soon, most likely within a week. It'll be a short Intermission chapter, leading in the second part of the story. I'll probably do a more detailed A/N there. Also, Katsumi won't be showing up again any time soon. His role as the main antagonist is effectively over now. Who will replace him, you ask? You'll find out reaaal soon.

As always, be sure to let me know what you think!


	13. Intermission

**Intermission**

Deep within the bowels of Hueco Mundo, far below even the Forest of Menos, a lone figure was partaking of his meal. The sounds of flesh being torn and bone cracking echoed throughout the cave as he ate.

His current 'home' was located at the bottom of an enormous ravine. The fissure extended for miles along one of the lowest levels of the Menos Forest, like a wound in the world. He had made the cave himself, by digging through the rock. This far down, the temperature never rose above minus twenty degrees Celsius. This made it perfect for long-term food storage.

The cold was just one of the reasons he had decided on this location as his base of operations. It was also incredibly difficult to reach, which ensured he never received any unwanted visitors. The descent was highly perilous, and any misstep could cost you your life. Well, not _his _life. Even if he were to slip and fall all the way to the bottom of the ravine, he'd still emerge unscathed. A Warlord was not so easily killed.

For almost a full century now, he had spent the majority of his time in this cave. The only time he risked going up to the surface was when his food stores ran low, and he tended to take several Adjuchas worth of flesh back with him after every foray to the desert above. Vasto Lorde were far too rare and valuable to be used as mere food.

Throughout the ages, he tended to change his location about once every two hundred years. The only people who had any business contacting him would be able to find him no matter where he went. Ties far stronger than mere blood connected him to his siblings.

Most of his time was spent sleeping. His sole duty was to survive until his master returned, and so he minimized his exposure to other Hollows, focusing on conserving his energy instead.

At least, that was how he'd done it for the first three hundred years spent in isolation.

He was a very curious sort by nature. On top of that, he was his lord's foremost tactician. He had to keep his mind sharp for when he would finally return. As such, he occasionally ventured into the world of the humans, bringing back as many books as he could find. Humans had made some incredible progress over the course of the last millennium, especially in the art of war. To them, that knowledge would surely prove invaluable in the future.

A being such as himself required a substantial amount of nourishment to survive. While he was at no risk of regression, his body was highly demanding. Under normal circumstances, he and his sisters would receive energy directly from their master, through their link to him. Obviously, that was no longer possible.

His fist clenched in a sudden onset of fury, crushing what remained of the head he was eating. Those accursed Shinigami had taken him away from them! For twelve hundred years, he'd been forced to hide under a rock because of them! Worst of all was that in all that time, he had not found a single lead as to his master's location.

Even so, their lord was undoubtedly still alive. Most likely somewhere within the Seireitei. If not, he and his siblings would have known. They might even have died with him if that had been the case. They were after all their master's limbs, in a very visceral sense. He thought it highly likely that their survival was linked to his.

One of his sisters had finally lost her patience a little over a century ago. Using her abilities, she had enslaved an army of lesser Hollows and bound four Vasto Lorde to her, using them to mount a direct assault on Soul Society. He had known it would prove a pointless excursion. Their enemies were far more formidable than Lilith gave them credit for.

He had tried to dissuade her, but she refused to heed his warnings. So when she attacked, he had given her all the support he could: he helped organize her army and maximize her chance of success, yet didn't participate in the battle himself. He did not take unnecessary risks.

Their other sister had not even cared. Kali had ignored all their attempts at establishing contact. They had not heard from her in over five hundred years now. Perhaps if _she_ had joined the fight, they might have succeeded. That point was moot though. Even if she had joined, it would still have been an unacceptable risk. All three of them might have died.

Sighing dejectedly, he cleaned his hand of the blood and brain matter. For now, he would sleep once again, most likely for one or two weeks. The Hollow he'd consumed had been a powerful Adjuchas; it should last him for that long at least.

That was all his life consisted of anymore: Sleeping, hunting, eating, and when he got the chance, reading. He padded back to his 'bed' – a great big fur he'd skinned off a particularly large, hairy Hollow. Before he lay down, he threw a longing look at the shrine dedicated to his master. It was a simple, yet grotesque thing.

He had made a perfectly horizontal cut into one of the larger rocks in his cave so he would have a flat surface. On top of it, he had put the treasured relic his master had given him so long ago, when he had begun his service. It was a stark white object, with black lines running across its surface like veins. It looked to be an oddly shaped chalice - big, sharp spikes jutted up from where you would put your lips. Obviously, it was not meant for drinking from.

The relic had been made from the very bones of his lord. His master was capable of regeneration of course, so the practice hadn't left him disfigured in any way. All of the Warlords had received one. They were their greatest treasures, and their most terrible weapons. They were nothing short of sacred to them.

He lay down on the bed, and closed his eyes.

"**Samael."**

The voice echoed throughout the cave, deep, dark, and terrible. Samael sat upright. Could it be? Could it possibly be true? After all these centuries?

Very slowly, he turned his head toward the relic. A black flame was now burning within the chalice, floating in between the spikes. The flame's center was pure white.

Almost falling over himself in his hurry to get to it, Samael sank to his knees beside the relic. The flame didn't give off any heat, and just the barest amount of light. It was clearly no ordinary fire - this was pure Reiatsu. A Reiatsu he knew better than his own.

Samael's obsidian mask glinted in the light. Tears began to stream down his cheeks. "My lord – is it, is it really you?" He spoke to the flame, voice cracking.

"**I am still weak. Contacting you requires all the power I can muster right now."**

With shaking hands, Samael took hold of the chalice. "My lord – give me your command. If you so desire, I shall infiltrate the Seireitei this very instant and free you!"

"**No." **The voice was stern, emotionless. **"You know that to be a fool's errand. I shall escape on my own, in time." **It was silent for a moment. **"What of the others?**

Samael's gaze fell. "Both of my sisters still live. However, Alastor and Halphas are long dead."

The flame seemed to dim for a moment. **"Alastor's essence returned to me when he was struck down. I clearly sensed his death. But Halphas as well?"**

Samael nodded, but was unsure of whether his lord was able to see him. He quickly spoke: "Yes. It was after you fell, my lord. He attempted to escape, but the Shinigami overwhelmed him."

"**I see. That is unfortunate. Losing Halphas' ability to fly weakens us severely."**

That his lord was not saddened by the news came as no surprise. While he and his siblings cared for each other, the relationship with their leader was strictly business. They revered him as a god, but both sides knew they were only using each other. The Hollow Lord, per definition, had no higher goal himself. All he longed for was to consume and destroy.

That simple instinct made him predictable. Being predictable was a weakness. Therefore, he required the wisdom of his Warlords.

"How is it that you have finally succeeded in establishing contact?" Samael spoke to the flame.

"**The old man is gone," **it answered.

Samael drew in a sharp breath. "General Yamamoto? He is dead?"

The flame dimmed again while the Hollow Lord was lost in thought. **"No. I do not believe he is. I felt him enter Hueco Mundo, but I lost track of him immediately after. He must in a place my senses cannot reach." **

An image of a gargantuan white dome surrounded by desert invaded Samael's mind. It had been a very long time since he had received a message that way. "I will investigate the area at once," he complied.

"**One month," **the voice bellowed. **"In one month, I shall return. You know what to do before then." **The flame flickered, and was extinguished.

Slowly, Samael righted himself. His shoulders shook as he laughed to himself in the total darkness, even as tears of joy simultaneously trailed down his cheeks.

One more month. In just one more month, their god would finally be reborn.

* * *

><p>AN: Told you it'd be a short one.

So yeah, the true antagonists of this fic have finally been (somewhat vaguely) revealed. I doubt there will be more chapters from Samael's, or any of the other Warlords' perspectives. While we're on the subject: I had one of those 'holy shit that would be awesome'-moments while thinking up names for the Warlords. There's someone I've been wanting to include in this story somehow, and having them recruit him/her seems like the perfect way to do that. I'll give you a hint: once he/she gets recruited, this character will take on the name Gomorrah.

I'm still planning out the second part of the fic, but I can already say that the next few chapters will focus almost exclusively on Grimmjow and Ichigo.

I'm working really hard to get chapter 13 out (Not counting the intermission as an actual chapter), since I don't want to leave you guys hanging for weeks with just this to go on. It should be out pretty soon, let's say within a week or two. I am trying to write shorter chapters from now on though, to reduce the time between updates. Also, editing a chapter with over 10K words makes me want to pull my own hair out with frustration by the time I reach the halfway point, so I'd rather avoid that if at all possible.

Next chapter, Ichigo will _finally _be getting his powers back. I think a lot of people will like the way it happens. See you then!


End file.
